29 Mar 2024
Wednesday 25 January 2017 - 14:37
Story Code : 248426

Astana talks may become milestone for Syrian future - Turkish foreign minister

Sputnik News- Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu assumes that the Syrian talks in Astana has potential to become an important turning point for the future of the Syrian settlement.

The intra-Syrian talks betweenthe delegation ofthe government inDamascus and armed opposition groups, which took place earlier this week inAstana, may become an important turning point forthe future ofthe Syrian settlement, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said.

"The conflicting sides discussed the ways tostrengthen the ceasefire regime and its extension acrossall Syria. The meeting was very important asit increased the level oftrust betweenthe sides. We hope that the outcomes ofthe Astana talks will make a contribution tothe Geneva process and will become a crucial point forthe Syrian future," Cavusoglu said Tuesday, while ona visit toMozambique, asquoted bythe Anadolu news agency.

The intra-Syrian talks, brokered byMoscow, Ankara and Tehran, were held inAstana onJanuary 23-24 and brought the Syrian government and opposition groups face-to-face forthe first time sincethe beginning ofthe civil war inSyria in2011. The Astana negotiations will be followed bya UN-mediated meeting inGeneva expected totake place onFebruary 8.

As a result ofthe talks, Russia, Iran and Turkey decided toestablish a trilateral mechanism tomonitor the ceasefire inSyria.

According toCavusoglu, this mechanism is very important and it is hard tooverestimate the role ofIran, which is supporting some groups, including Hezbollah, which, ontheir part, are backing President Bashar Assad.

 
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