Moscow, Apr 28 (IANS/RIA Novosti): The crisis in Syria is impossible to settle if the international community ignores the positions of Russia and China, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.

"I believe there has been understanding recently that the crisis may not be settled if the positions of Russia and China are ignored," Lavrov told the Rossiya 24 TV channel.

According to UN estimates, more than 9,000 people have been killed in Syria since the outbreak of a popular uprising against President Bashar al-Assad in March last year.

Russia and China have twice vetoed UN Security Council resolutions on Syria over what Russia said was a pro-rebel bias, but supported UN envoy Kofi Annan's peace plan, which Damascus also backed.

"Our Western partners are constantly speaking of the necessity to ensure supremacy of law in each separate country, and we do not argue with that," Lavrov said.

"This is in our interests, we are actively dealing with this. Our leadership is taking specific steps in that direction," the Russian minister said.

He said the supremacy of law principle should not be ignored in international affairs.

"There is the UN Charter, international law embodied in other universal documents, and these documents should be observed," Lavrov said.

A ceasefire, part of Annan's peace plan, came into force in Syria April 12, although there have been reports of numerous violations of the truce by both government and opposition forces.