Outgoing UN Envoy Mistura urges Syrians to form constitutional committee
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Pro-government and rebels in Syria are close to agreeing on a committee to draft a new constitution which would be a key first step in halting the bloodshed of the protracted conflict.
Mistura's posting will expire at the end of the year, but he is hopeful the groundwork can be laid for a much talked about constitutional committee.
He said "agreement, particularly on the side of the government" of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was needed.
Mistura is to give his final briefing to the UN Security Council on December 20.
He has observed recent meetings of opposition and loyalists at the Astana talks sponsored by Russia, Iran, and Turkey.
The United Nations has also led talks in Geneva to seek a resolution to the conflict that began in 2011.
Mistura met with Chinese Special Envoy for Syria Xie Xiaoyan to try to solicit the permanent UN Security Council member's support in the UN track.
Xiaoyan focused on rebuilding the war-torn country where around 400,000 people have been killed and nearly half of all Syrian have been displaced at one time or another during the conflict.
"China will work with the international community to engage in the reconstruction work," he said. "We hope that the conditions will be appropriate meaning that security is guaranteed."
He expressed the cost to rebuild would be "hundreds of billions of dollars" and need the support of both regional countries and world powers "including the United States."
"What is missing is [a] few names, just [a] few names to be agreed upon on the constitutional committee," said UN Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura on Friday.
Mistura's posting will expire at the end of the year, but he is hopeful the groundwork can be laid for a much talked about constitutional committee.
He said "agreement, particularly on the side of the government" of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was needed.
Mistura is to give his final briefing to the UN Security Council on December 20.
He has observed recent meetings of opposition and loyalists at the Astana talks sponsored by Russia, Iran, and Turkey.
The United Nations has also led talks in Geneva to seek a resolution to the conflict that began in 2011.
Mistura met with Chinese Special Envoy for Syria Xie Xiaoyan to try to solicit the permanent UN Security Council member's support in the UN track.
Xiaoyan focused on rebuilding the war-torn country where around 400,000 people have been killed and nearly half of all Syrian have been displaced at one time or another during the conflict.
"China will work with the international community to engage in the reconstruction work," he said. "We hope that the conditions will be appropriate meaning that security is guaranteed."
He expressed the cost to rebuild would be "hundreds of billions of dollars" and need the support of both regional countries and world powers "including the United States."