UNITED NATIONS, July 19 (Xinhua) -- UN special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, on Monday called on all sides in Syria to take reciprocal steps to advance the political process, said a UN spokesman.

Pedersen briefed the Security Council, via a video link from Oslo, on the political situation in Syria in a closed-door meeting.

"In an effort to move the political process forward, Mr. Pedersen has urged all sides to define, with greater precision, what kind of reforms and steps they are willing to take, if concrete steps are taken on the other side," said Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"The envoy noted that any steps should be reciprocal and mutual. They should be realistic and precise. They should be implemented in parallel," said the spokesman.

Before going into the closed-door meeting, French UN ambassador Nicolas de Riviere said there is a need for progress in the political field.

"Since we have renewed the cross-border (aid delivery) mechanism, we need to do some progress on the political track, because in the end, if you want to resolve the humanitarian situation in Syria, it's not just about renewing the mechanism, but (about) resolving the underlying problems and resolving the political situation," he told reporters.

"To be honest, there's no progress," he said.

The Security Council on July 9 adopted a resolution to extend the authorization of the cross-border aid mechanism for 12 months, after difficult negotiations. Enditem

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