Syria Peace Talks in Astana to Be Closed-Door Event
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A new round of Syria peace negotiations planned in the Kazakh city of Astana will be held behind closed doors, according to Kazakhstan’s foreign ministry.
IRNA quoted the Kazakh foreign ministry as saying on Sunday that reporters will not be attending the peace negotiations, slated for January 23 and 24.
Delegations form the Syrian government and the opposition will start the negotiations in Astana on Monday with representatives from Iran, Russia, Turkey and the UN in attendance.
According to reports, a number of officials from Russia’s defense ministry as well as the US ambassador to Kazakhstan are going to take part in the talks.
Head of Iran’s delegation in the talks, Hossein Jaberi Ansari, has announced that Tehran will pursue a four-point plan that it had put forward earlier, entailing preservation of Syria’s territorial integrity.
The proposal includes plans to safeguard Syria’s territorial integrity and national sovereignty and put all issues to the vote of the Syrian people, he noted, saying Iran will pursue the same plan in the Astana talks.
Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with various terrorist groups, including Daesh (ISIL), currently controlling parts of it.
Diplomatic efforts to end fighting in Syria have gained momentum in recent weeks with the announcement of a ceasefire in the Arab country earlier this month.
The truce, which has been negotiated between Russia, Iran, Turkey, the Damascus government and the Syrian opposition, excludes terrorist groups such as Daesh and Jabhat Fateh al-Sham.
