Russia to meet with Syrian opposition in Moscow

MOSCOW, Russia (Kurdistan24) – The Foreign Minister of Russia plans to meet with representatives of the Syrian opposition in Moscow on Friday.

Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, confirmed the meeting following peace talks in Astana, Kazakhstan.

The report was carried out by the country’s official TASS news agency which did not provide any further details about the meeting.

During the peace talks, Russia, Turkey, and Iran agreed to form a trilateral mechanism to monitor and guarantee the complete fulfillment of a ceasefire in Syria.

Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition expressed their dissatisfaction at the outcome of the peace talks.

Moreover, following the peace talks, opposition delegate Osama Abu Zaid told the press the group had made proposals to Russia regarding the enforcement of the ceasefire, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency reported.

“The opposition delegation is working hard to consolidate the ceasefire as the primary focus of the talks,” an anonymous source added.

The opposition did not reveal the details of the trilateral mechanism or why they rejected the agreement.

According to the group’s spokesperson, the delegation met with the guarantors and a UN team led by Staffan de Mistura to focus on “maintenance of the ceasefire agreement.”

Since Dec. 30, 2016, a shaky ceasefire has been in place in Syria under the sponsorships of Turkey and Russia.

The Astana peace talks focused on extending the initial ceasefire in the war-torn country.

The discussions included representatives of the Syrian regime, opposition groups, the UN Special Envoy de Mistura, the US Ambassador to Kazakhstan George Krol, and representatives from Russia, Turkey, and Iran.

Editing by Ava Homa