Kazakh MFA waiting for date of next Astana Syrian talks to be confirmed

ASTANA. KAZINFORM - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan is waiting for the date of the next Astana International Meeting on Syrian Settlement to be confirmed, First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Mukhtar Tleuberdi said on the sidelines of the Government's session on Tuesday.

"We're still waiting, there are no fixed dates... The meeting might take place on May 3-4. But, you know, anything can happen like it was the last time when the opposition skipped the meeting. All sides to the Syrian talks are yet to confirm their participation," Tleuberdi told Kazinform correspondent.

In his words, the ministry hopes that the meeting will take place on May 3-4 as it has been previously agreed by the guarantor countries. "If one of the parties skips the talks, there will be no sense in the negotiations. The talks will be regarded as successful only if all parties participate," he elaborated.

"We don't interfere into the process of negotiations. We only provide the platform. We do not participate in the negotiations. The guarantor countries should guarantee the Syrian opposition's participation," Tleuberdi added.

As a reminder, during the last negotiations in Astana in mid March the guarantor countries decided to hold the next International Meeting on Syrian Settlement on May 3-4, 2017.