Syrian Arab Republic Delegation Arrives in Kazakh Capital to Take Part in 11th Round of Astana Talks on Syria
ASTANA, (ST)- The 11th round of Astana talks on Syria will be held on November 28-29. The delegation of the Syrian Arab Republic, led by Dr. Bashar al-Jaafari, arrived in the Kazakh capital on Tuesday to take part in the talks on settlement in Syria.
The Kazakh Foreign Ministry Spokesman Aibek Smadiyarov told reporters on Monday that all parties invited to the Astana meeting on Syria have confirmed their participation.
The guarantors of the Astana process (Iran, Russia and Turkey), the Syrian government and the armed opposition, as well as Jordan – an observer country – have confirmed their participation, Smadiyarov said.
In a statement to reporters on Tuesday, Director of Asia and Africa Department at the Kazakh Foreign Ministry Heydar Beck Tomatov said that the Iranian delegation will be led by top Assistant Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Hussein Jaberi Ansari, while the Russian delegation will be led by Alexander Lavrentiev, the Russian President’s Special Envoy for Syria.
Tomatov said that bilateral and trilateral consultations will be held on the first day of Astana meeting, while a plenary meeting is to be held on the second day.
The Kazakh capital has hosted nine meetings on the crisis in Syria. The tenth meeting was held in the Russian city of Sochi late last July based on Astana format. All the meetings affirmed commitment to preserving Syria’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity and to the fight against terrorism.
Hamda Mustafa