The Kazakh Foreign Ministry announced that the next international meeting of the Astana Process on Syria will take place on November 11 and 12 in the Kazakh capital. The ministry stated on Friday that the first day will focus on bilateral and tripartite consultations among delegations, with discussions continuing into the following day. A plenary session and a final press conference will conclude the meeting. According to the statement, the agenda will address the evolving regional situation around Syria, efforts toward a comprehensive settlement, the current situation on the ground, as well as confidence-building measures, the issue of missing persons, reconstruction, and the return of Syrian refugees.
The Russian Foreign Ministry, on October 9, announced that preparations were underway for the next round of Astana talks. The 21st round of talks took place on January 25, with the participation of the guarantor countries (Russia, Turkey, and Iran), along with delegations from the Syrian regime and the opposition. Observers from Jordan, Lebanon, and Iraq were also present, in addition to representatives from the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Astana process, which began in early 2017, has seen 21 rounds of talks, though little progress has been made on the key issues, except for the “de-escalation” agreements reached in May 2017 for the Idlib region. These agreements were meant to reduce hostilities between Syrian regime forces and opposition factions. However, Russia and regime forces have violated these agreements regularly, with the most significant violation occurring in 2020 when regime forces, backed by Russia and Iranian militias, gained control of many areas in Idlib. A ceasefire was brokered between Turkey and Russia on March 5, 2020, but tensions continue.
On Friday, representatives from Moscow and Cairo, two prominent components of the Syrian opposition negotiating body, announced that they had reached a consensus on a memorandum outlining key points for pushing a political solution in Syria. The joint statement emphasized that the two platforms had come to a series of agreements after several meetings.
The first point focuses on the unity of Syria’s territory and people, aiming for a genuine political transition that ends the de facto partition of the country. It also calls for the withdrawal of all foreign forces, including the Israeli occupation of the Syrian Golan. The second clause stresses that the full implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254 is the only viable path out of Syria’s crisis. This resolution outlines the framework for a political transition, which would allow the Syrian people to choose a new political system that ensures the unity of their country.
Russian-Turkish Coordination on the Ground
In the lead-up to the Astana negotiations, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that Turkish and Russian intelligence officers held a meeting at the Russian checkpoint near the village of Tarnaba, west of Saraqeb, in northwestern Syria. The meeting followed talks between Turkish intelligence and Syrian opposition factions, including Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, discussing military and political matters related to the Idlib “de-escalation” zone. The discussions covered topics such as the reopening of international roads and trade routes, signaling close coordination between Turkish and Russian military and intelligence agencies in the region.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
