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Astana talks end with deal on safety zones

5 May 2017 17:10 (UTC+04:00)
Astana talks end with deal on safety zones

By Kamila Aliyeva

The latest round of Astana talks sponsored by Russia, Turkey and Iran completed by signing the agreement on de-escalation zones.

The presence of representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition in Astana will positively affect the negotiations in Geneva, should the agreement is respected, the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said in an interview with the Sky News Eurasian television channel, RIA Novosti reported.

"The two sides, the Syrian government and most of the opposition were present, and this will have a positive effect on the Geneva talks, but under condition that the agreement will operate. We had several armistices, three, I believe, in my period, I guess that this one has an opportunity to be successful," de Mistura said.

The talks in Astana serve as a real opportunity to reduce the escalation of the conflict in Syria, according to the Special Envoy.

"The negotiations were complicated, because they were real, and real - because there are signatures, and even the presence of observers such as Jordan and the U.S. is important. And there were other topics, such as mine clearance, prisoners, missing and dead. Everything is moving in the right direction, and there are real attempts," he added.

De Mistura also noted that there is no ready-made political solution to the Syrian crisis, but negotiations contribute to this.

Representatives of the guarantor countries of the ceasefire in Syria during this round of international talks in Astana signed a memorandum on the establishment of four de-escalation zones in Syria, which include the province of Idlib and seven other regions. According to the memorandum, since May 6 any clashes between government forces and armed groups will be ceased in these zones.

The work of coalition aviation in the zones of de-escalations in Syria is impossible, the guarantor countries will closely monitor all actions in this direction, said the Russian president's special envoy, the head of the Russian delegation to the talks on Syria in Astana Alexander Lavrentiev.

Any military activity, including flights of aircraft, will be banned. Russia, Iran and Turkey will do their utmost to combat terrorism in these territories and outside them. "As for the flights by aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces, we will naturally cease combat operations on this territory but only if no efforts are taken from the territory of de-escalation zones to destabilize the situation on the country’s other territories," Lavrentyev said.

Ten days after signing the memorandum, the guarantor states will establish a joint working group, in particular for designating the borders of de-escalation and security zones. By late May, the maps of these areas will be drawn up.

The memorandum will be in force during six months and can be extended automatically for the same period. This agreement was highly assessed by many.

In theory, safe zones offer refuge and humanitarian aid to displaced persons fleeing violence, though it is uncertain how the three nations expect to monitor the newly established zones. A safe-zone strategy has garnered criticism in the past for serving as a band-aid solution to the refugee crisis while failing to address the root of the Syrian conflict. Historically, safe zones have even become targets for increased violence.

The nationwide Syrian ceasefire regime was introduced on December 30, 2016, with Russia, Iran and Turkey serving as its guarantors. The UN Security Council passed a resolution in December supporting the effort.

Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with various terrorist groups, including Daesh (also known as ISIS or ISIL), controlling parts of it.

According to a report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the country’s pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz

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