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What to expect from the new round of Syria talks in Astana?
A fresh round of international negotiations on the Syrian crisis has started in Kazakhstan, aimed at reconciling different views on how to proceed with the political process in the war-torn country. Meanwhile, some new developments are expected regarding Russia’s plan of “de-escalation zones” in Syria.
Tabnak – A fresh round of international negotiations on the Syrian crisis has started in Kazakhstan, aimed at reconciling different views on how to proceed with the political process in the war-torn country. Meanwhile, some new developments are expected regarding Russia’s plan of "de-escalation zones” in Syria.
The fifth round of talks between the Syrian government and opposition, with Iran, Russia, and Turkey as mediators, started out in Astana on Tuesday with a trilateral discussion among the moderators.
Anuar Zhainakov, the press-secretary at Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry, confirmed to AFP that delegates from the Syrian government and anti-Damascus militant groups had earlier arrived in Astana.
The talks will last two days and seek to build up on the results of the previous round in May, which saw the participants agreeing to create four de-escalation zones in the violence-battered Arab country.
Meanwhile, Russia has announced that it may deploy troops to de-escalation zones in Syria after agreement from Turkey and Iran. According to Press TV, Russian negotiator Alexander Lavrentyev made the announcement during Astana talks on Tuesday.
"Overall, (the agreement) provides for the presence of Russian military police in the buffer zones, but once again this matter has not been agreed yet…Depending on when the documents on safe zones are signed, I think one should expect concrete measures on the deployment of forces within 2-3 weeks," he said.
The final documents pertaining to the de-escalation zones are expected to be signed on Wednesday, he added, noting that the principles of the zones have already been agreed upon in the former rounds of the talks.
However, Syrian authorities fear that de-escalation zones could become a place of external interference, in particular, from Turkey and Qatar, Sputnik News quotes Syrian Minister of State for National Reconciliation Affairs Ali Haidar as saying.
"In general, we have no fears about the idea of creating security zones. But we are worried about what will happen after their final formation. In particular, we are asking ourselves: could these zones become a place of covert intervention in Syrian affairs from outside, in particular, from Turkey and Qatar?" Haidar said in an interview with Russia's Izvestia newspaper published on Wednesday.
In May, Russia, Iran and Turkey agreed to establish four "de-escalation zones" in Syria. In his today’s remarks Lavrentyev noted that Russia and its partners are still engaged in negotiations concerning detailed maps and other conditions related to Idlib province and the southern regions, while the borders of two other zones, in Homs province and near Damascus, had been agreed upon.
In another development, the Syria announced that it has suspended military operations in the south of the country, including in Quneitra Province, where the Israeli regime has targeted army outposts in recent days.
The army general command further said that the measure had been adopted in order to support "reconciliation efforts," in the second unilateral truce in the last two weeks.
Different foreign-backed terrorist groups have been wreaking havoc in Syria since 2011. Over the past few months, Syrian forces have made sweeping gains against Takfiri elements, who have lately increased their acts of violence across the country following a series of defeats on the ground.
