Kerry: U.S. backs peace talks on Syria Astana

ASTANA.KAZINFORM - The United States supports an upcoming meeting in Astana, Kazakhstan on settling the Syrian conflict and hopes that the talks will bring the parties to the conflict closer to the negotiations in Geneva, US Secretary of State John Kerry said in a press conference on Thursday, Kazinform refers to Sputniknews.com.    

"We are encouraging the meeting in Astana," Kerry stated. "We hope that could produce a step forward... The same objective remains, which is to get to Geneva, where the real meet of the talks is going to take place. I don't think anybody at this point has an expectation, there is going to be some major step forward in Astana, if that takes place."

Kerry underscored that the United States would back any effective methodology that could impact the choices made by the Syrian opposition groups or by the government of President Bashar Assad.

On December 17, 2016, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed in a phone call the possibility of a meeting in Astana between the parties to the Syrian conflict with Russia, Iran and Turkey as potential mediators.

Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev supported the initiative and expressed readiness to provide a platform for such talks in the Kazakh capital.

The meeting is expected to take place on January 23, 2017 in Astana. In Geneva the meeting will be held on February 8, 2017 under the ageist of the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura.