PARIS (Sputnik) — The Astana talks on Syria marked a stage in the Syrian reconciliation and it was necessary to give it a chance, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said Saturday.
"Astana is a step [in Syrian reconciliation]. We had to give it a chance for peace settlement. That is true, we see that it was difficult to gather the whole opposition. But there is an initiative from from Russia, Turkey and Iran, which has ended with a resolution on the ceasefire. They committed themselves to implementing the conditions of the ceasefire," Ayrault told reports after a meeting with his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel.
"The next step is to remain in the UN framework and return to the negotiating table in Geneva as soon as possible… It is necessary for everybody, including the regime and the whole of opposition, to gather at the negotiating table in Geneva… to discuss transition," Ayrault added.
