Astana Process Strengthens Resolve In Ending Syrian Conflict

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 26 (Bernama) -- The two-day peace talks in Astana, Kazakhstan between the Syrian Government and the opposition which ended on Tuesday has strengthened the resolve of the parties involved in ending the six-year-old Syrian conflict. During the talks, parties in the conflict agreed on a trilateral mechanism to observe and ensure full compliance with the ceasefire and prevent any provocation. The details of the talks were provided by the Embassy of Kazakhstan here on Wednesday. The parties also stated their willingness to participate in the next round of negotiations between the government and the opposition under the United Nations' auspices in Geneva on Feb 8, and reiterated their determination to jointly fight against the Daesh group of militants and Al-Nusra. The Permanent Representative of Syria to the United Nations, Bashar al-Jaafari noted the mechanism on monitoring the ceasefire would be implemented step by step except in the territory of WadiBarada which was under attack from the Al-Nusra group. "It was extremely painful to sit in the same room with Syrian rebels working for foreign powers, some of them even committed terrorist acts," al-Jaafari was reported saying in the details provided by the embassy. However, he noted that the government would do "whatever it takes to stop bloodshed and terror." According to the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs, representatives of 15 rebel groups also took part in the talks with the opposition led by Mohammad Alloush, leader of Jaish al-Islam. Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov said the final joint statement issued by the three guarantor states, Russia, Turkey and Iran noted the conflict could only be solved through a political process based on the implementation of the UN Security Council resolution 2254 in its entirety. Russia, Turkey and Iran, during the course of negotiations stressed on the dominant role of the UN and the importance of UN Security Council resolutions, including the work of the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General on Syria. The talks, dubbed 'Astana Process' were the first ever to include both the Syrian Government and the Syrian armed opposition. It was also attended by UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura and United States Ambassador to Kazakhstan, George Krol. The war in Syria has ruined the country, killing half a million people and forcing the population to flee from its borders. From the beginning, Kazakhstan has been urging the international community to seek a diplomatic solution, believing that military methods only exacerbated the situation. --BERNAMA