Spokesman Dujarric: UN has not received invitation to Astana talks

The United Nations has not received an invitation to the Syria talks to be held in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, Spokesman for the Secretary-General, Stephane Dujarric, said Wednesday. 

Speaking at the daily press briefing of the spokesperson office, Dujarric said the UN did not receive any formal invitation to the Astana talks but expressed the UN’s support for the talks.  “I would say it is a process that we very much support,” he said.

The Syria talks in Astana are scheduled to be held on the 23rd of this month (January). The negotiations are brokered by Turkey and Russia and are intended to build on the ceasefire that was declared in Ankara last December. 

A countrywide ceasefire in Syria was declared on Thursday (29 December 2016), after Turkey, Russia and opposition fighting groups reached a deal in the Turkish capital Ankara. According to the deal, Turkey and Russia would act as guarantor countries for the implementation of the ceasefire.