Syrian Gov’t, Opposition Attend Fresh Peace Talks in Astana
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Representatives from the Syrian government and rebel groups held fresh talks Thursday with key powerbrokers Russia, Iran and Turkey aiming to shore up a fragile ceasefire.
The meeting is the second time key players Moscow, Ankara and Tehran have brought the warring sides together, and comes ahead of a new round of UN-led talks on Syria in Geneva on Feb. 23.
The latest round of discussions is expected to focus mostly on bolstering a faltering six-week truce and has been billed as a prelude to broader negotiations in Geneva.
The regional brokers met separately for talks with government and rebel delegates on Thursday in the Kazakh capital Astana, Reuters reported.
It appeared unlikely that the two sides would meet one-on-one, but a plenary session involving all parties was scheduled.
A first set of talks on Syria that took place in Astana in January saw the opposition groups refuse to talk directly to the government.
Rebel spokesman Yehya al-Aridi told AFP Wednesday the opposition was sending a "smaller" delegation than the one it sent for the talks last month.
The Syrian government is represented in Astana by its ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Jaafari.
As the talks were set to begin in Astana, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura was in Moscow for talks with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
"Now is the right time to step up efforts to normalize the political process in Syria," de Mistura told Lavrov in comments translated into Russian by the state-run TASS news agency.
De Mistura's office is being represented by a technical team at the Astana meet.