The 15th round of “Astana”: “Idlib” is at the top of the discussions

The Russian President’s envoy to Syria, Alexander Lavrentiev, confirmed at the opening of the session yesterday morning that his country is registering a “specific activation of sleeper cells for the terrorist organization ISIS in Syria”, referring to the “escalation clashes in the northwest of the country, and increased activity by extremist groups stationed there. “Lavrentiev noted that” Russia completely excludes any agreement with terrorist groups and is focusing on eliminating them completely, “emphasizing” the need for the Syrian opposition ridding Idlib of terrorists “and calling for” all efforts to prevent a new wave that fuels the armed conflict, because it is “will be catastrophic not only for Syria, but will also bring significant negative consequences for the entire region”. And he indicated that “the fight against terrorism will be among the priority issues to be addressed during the Astana meeting in Sochi”, adding that “the delegations will also discuss, during the meeting, the issue of the return of Syrian refugees to their country. , as well as the economic situation in Syria. ” He also revealed that the United States refused to participate as an observer at the “Formula Astana” meeting in Sochi.

The government delegation called on the United Nations to condemn the “separatist” measures in Al-Hasakah and Qamishli.

The Syrian government delegation headed by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Sousan held a meeting with the Russian delegation headed by Lavrentiev, where they agreed on the importance of continuing the work within the framework of the Astana route, which “managed to achieve positive results. The two sides affirmed their determination to “continue to fight terrorism and work together to stop violations by armed groups in Idlib and defeat terrorism in all Syrian lands.” They also spoke about “the issue of providing humanitarian aid to Syrians without external conditions, and the economic situation in light of unilateral and illegal coercive measures.” The government delegation also met with the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, who stressed to him “the importance of eliminating terrorism and ending the illegal foreign presence on Syrian territory because it is the main obstacle to the return of stability there. ” , as well as “the need to stop and condemn the measures taken by some separatist groups in Hasaka and Qamishli.” For his part, the spokesman for the “military opposition” delegation, Ayman Al-Asimi, told the Turkish “Anadolu Agency” that among the most prominent files discussed in the discussions were “the transformation of Idlib into an area of ​​high the integral fire, the question of the Constitutional Committee and the terrorist violations in the east of the Euphrates “.
For his part, Ahmad Tohme heads the “political opposition” delegation, while the Iranian delegation is headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Ali Asghar Khaji, and the Turkish delegation is headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Sadat Onal. The meetings are also attended by delegates from Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan and Kazakhstan, as observers. This round is of great importance, especially after the failure of the fifth round of Constitutional Committee meetings in Geneva less than a month ago.

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