Activities of the two-day Astana 16 talks started on Wednesday in the Kazakh capital, Nur-Sultan.
The Syrian Arab Republic [government] delegation, headed by Dr. Ayman Susan, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs, arrived in the Kazakh capital on Tuesday.
Delegations of the guarantor countries of the Astana process, Russia, Iran, and the Turkish regime, participate in the meeting. The Russian President’s Special Envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev heads the Russian delegation, Senior Assistant to Iranian Foreign Minister for Special Political Affairs Ali Asghar Khaji heads the Iranian delegation, while Deputy Foreign Minister Sidat Unal heads the Turkish regime delegation.
Ambassadors from Lebanon, Jordan, and Iraq also participate as observers, in addition to the UN delegation headed by the UN special envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen.
The agenda is scheduled to discuss the developments in Syria, the political process, the situation on the ground, and humanitarian assistance, in addition to discussing the economic and social situation as well as the sanitary conditions related to the spread of the coronavirus and prospects of resuming the work of the Committee of Discussing the Constitution in Geneva.
Syrian [government] delegation meets with Iranian and Russian delegations
The Syrian delegation held a meeting on Wednesday with the Iranian delegation headed by Senior Assistant to the Iranian Foreign Minister for Special Political Affairs Ali Asghar Khaji in the framework of the 16th Astana meeting in Nur-Sultan.
The two affirmed their determination to continue working together and coordinate directly to ensure reaching results that serve the interests of the Syrian people and preserve Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity away from any external interference.
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Earlier, the delegation held a meeting with its Russian counterpart. The two sides expressed determination to continue the joint work until the withdrawal of the US forces and other foreign forces illegitimately present in the Syrian lands.
Idleb
The meeting with the Russian delegation touched upon the situation in Idleb and the violations committed by terrorist organizations and their crimes against the locals. In addition, the humanitarian situation in Syria was also discussed, as the Syrian side denounced the measures that Turkish occupation forces have taken and their continued support of terrorism in the region.
Geir Pederson
Susan also met with the UN special envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen.
During the meeting, they reviewed the latest developments in Syria. Susan stressed the necessity to raise the voice loudly regarding the “violations committed by the Turkish and U.S. occupation forces against the Syrian people”.
They also touched upon the political process, as Susan confirmed the Syrian government continues its positive efforts in this process. In turn, Pederson expressed his intention to continue preparing for the sixth round of the meetings of the Committee of Discussing the Constitution in Geneva.
Russian and Iranian delegations
The Russian and Iranian delegations also held a meeting on the sidelines of the Astana talks.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed the latest developments in Syria and the region and affirmed their common stances towards the issues on the current meeting agenda.
This article was 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.
