Kazakh foreign minister says Russia, Turkey, Iran confirm participation in Astana talks on Syria

ASTANA, March 13. /TASS/. Russia, Turkey and Iran have confirmed their participation in the next Astana meeting on settling the Syrian crisis, Kazakhstan’s Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov said addressing the country’s lower house of parliament. "We have received an official message from the Russian Federation saying that a special representative of the Russian president and a special representative of the foreign minister will participate, besides, deputy foreign ministers from Turkey and Iran are scheduled to take part in the meeting. We are now waiting for other participants’ confirmations," Abdrakhmanov said. The Kazakh foreign minister added that "today, delegations will start to arrive in order to take part in the next round of the Astana process aimed at settling the situation in Syria." "In many aspects, the meeting’s format and agenda depend on the guarantor countries, that is, Russia, Turkey and Iran. Jordan was also be present (as an observer) at one of the technical meetings held on February 5 in Astana, ensuring the participation of the Syrian armed opposition groups active in the southern parts of the country close to the Jordanian border. This means that the Syrian ceasefire has already proved to be effective as the number of those joining the ceasefire has been growing," Abdrakhmanov added. The next international Astana meeting is scheduled to be held on March 14-15. Delegations from Russia, Turkey and Iran will take part in the meeting, invitations have also been sent to the United Nations, the United States and Jordan. The Syrian government and the armed opposition are expected to confirm their participation. On March 14, preliminary consultations will be held while a plenary meeting is due on March 15. Read more