Sixth Round of Syria Peace Talks Kicks Off in Astana
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The sixth round of negotiations to resolve the Syrian conflict kicked off in the Kazakh city of Astana on Thursday with the participation of representatives from the Syrian government and foreign-sponsored armed opposition.
The two-day negotiations are mainly aimed at working out the details of an agreement to create a fourth de-escalation zone in Syria in the western province of Idlib.
The negotiations are supervised by Iran, Russia and Turkey as the mediators of the talks.
The first meeting was held between the Russian delegation headed by Moscow’s special envoy on Syria Alexander Lavrentiev and UN special envoy for Syria Staffan De Mistura.
The next meeting is scheduled to be held between the Russian and US delegations.
Prior to the talks, representatives from Iran, Russia and Turkey held an expert-level meeting Wednesday on how on a de-escalation zone in Idlib Province.
Since January, Astana has hosted five rounds of peace talks which have so far resulted in an agreement on four de-escalation zones across Syria.
Formation of a de-escalation zone in Idlib, where significant concentrations of Takfiri terrorists, most notably from al-Nusra Front, are operating, is expected to give civilians an opportunity to return to peaceful life in the province.
The talks in Astana have been going on in tandem with UN-brokered Geneva talks.
