UN Should Speed up Intra-Syrian Talks in Geneva
Russia Supports de Mistura’s Proposal to Resume Intra-Syrian Talks in Geneva on February 20
MOSCOW-Russia hopes that regional partners will provide maximum assistance to the Syrian parties in preparing the meeting in Geneva due to be held on February 20, Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry has announced.
“We support the proposal of UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to resume the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva on February 20,” she said in a statement on Thursday.
“We hope our regional partners will provide maximum assistance to the Syrian parties in getting ready for the negotiations,” she added, according to Itar Tass.
According to the Russian diplomat, representatives from Russia, Turkey, Iran and the UN practically ended in Astana on February 6 work to fix the Syrian areas occupied by terrorists
One of the main results of the meeting was that they practically completed work to fix Syrian areas under the control of ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra, she said.
Zakharova also said two draft documents prepared by Russia and planned for discussion at upcoming sessions of the joint group have been handed over.
“This is the protocol to the agreement on a mechanism to record violations of the ceasefire, declared in Syria starting from December 30, 2016, and the mode of applying sanctions against those who violate it,” as well as the provision on the area, joining the reconciliation process, she said.
UN Should Speed up Intra-Syrian Talks in Geneva
The United Nations should speed up the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva following almost a year-long pause in the negotiations, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov said in an interview with TASS.
“As for another round of the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva, according to UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura, they are scheduled to take place on February 20 following months-long delay,” Gatilov added.
“We believe that delaying the talks since April 2016 is unreasonable so the United Nations should speed up the process,” the senior Russian diplomat added, according to Itar Tass.
New step taken in Astana
Gatilov went on to say that Moscow considered the recent Astana meeting on Syria (held on January 23-24) to be “an important step aimed at boosting efforts for settling the Syrian crisis.” “First, the armed opposition groups have joined the process, particularly, the talks on Syria’s future, while they had been refusing to build any contacts with the government,” the diplomat noted. “Second, an important conclusion was made in Astana, as everybody agreed that there was no military solution to the conflict.”
Besides, the Russian deputy foreign minister pointed out that the meeting’s participants had confirmed the ceasefire established in accordance with an agreement reached on December 29, while a trilateral mechanism for monitoring the ceasefire and investigating ceasefire violations had been set up by Russia, Iran and Turkey.
“It was made clear that all the efforts aimed to advance the search for a political solution made in Astana would contribute to the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva under the United Nations auspices in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolution 2254,” Gatilov said. “One of the positive results of the Astana meeting is that it gave a much-needed impetus to the process, encouraging the United Nations to boost their activities.”
Long pauses in talks are harmful
Gatilov also said that unnecessary delays in talks “are harmful for the settlement process.” “This is why since no talks under UN auspices have been taking place, new initiatives emerged,” he explained. “Of course, it would be better if all these efforts were carried out under a single umbrella but for that long pauses in dialogue should be avoided.”
“We are convinced that participants in the talks should stop going around in circles and tackle specific issues in accordance with the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2254,” the high-ranking Russian diplomat concluded.
H.M