Establishing ceasefire major topic of Astana talks

TEHRAN, Jan. 23 (MNA) – Iran’s FM Spokesman Bahram Ghasemi hailed the Astana talks for being the initiative of three major regional countries, saying establishment of ceasefire will be the most important topic during the talks. Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Ghasemi made the remarks in his weekly press conference in Tehran on Monday, adding “the special aspect of the Astana talks is that three major and regional players (Iran, Russia, Turkey) have initiated it so there is hope that their realistic approach and careful planning would help further facilitate the Syrian-Syrian negotiations.” He went on to add, “the Astana talks is the results of trilateral efforts made by Iran, Russia and Turkey that are attending as observers and will try to facilitate and manage the talks between the Syrian government and the opposition groups.” Noting that the issue of ceasefire will be the major topic of today's talks in the Kazakh capital, Ghasemi added “it is unlikely that other topics will be discussed as well, because there is not enough time for that. However, if this meeting can lead to some positive steps toward a sustainable ceasefire, that is a great achievement based on which further decisions can be made about the future of Syria.” To be updated.