MUNICH (Sputnik) — The Syrian settlement talks in Astana were useful to consolidate the ceasefire regime in the crisis-torn country, but it is necessary to focus on political aspects of the reconciliation, UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said Saturday.
"Astana was useful to consolidate ceasefire, but now it is time to talk about political questions," Mistura told reporters when asked about the prospects of Geneva talks.
The first round of Astana talks on Syrian crisis settlement brought together the representatives of the Syrian government and the armed opposition groups for the first time in the six years of the Syrian war. As a result of the talks, Russia, Iran and Turkey agreed to establish a trilateral mechanism to monitor the ceasefire that came into effect on December 30, 2016.
