Astana talks end with Syrian regime and opposition no closer
ASTANA, Kazakhstan – Syrian opposition groups and the regime appear no closer to reaching a solution to the six-year long civil war after two days of talks organized by Russia, Iran, and Turkey that saw the rebels refusing to talk face-to-face with Damascus while the Syrian army continued to carry out bombardments, and the regime complaining about Turkey’s interference.
In the final statement issued by Russia, Iran, and Turkey, the three organizers said they will establish a “trilateral mechanism to observe and ensure full compliance with a ceasefire, prevent any provocations, and determine all modalities of the ceasefire.”
Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov read the joint statement in which they stated they supported “the willingness of the armed opposition groups to participate in the next round of negotiations to be held between the government and the opposition under the UN auspices in Geneva” on February 8.
While the three nations stated their support for the UN-facilitated talks, no concrete steps were made towards reaching a political solution to the war in the two days of meetings in Astana where rebels and regime representatives met through mediators.
Syrian rebels reportedly blamed Damascus and Tehran for the lack of progress, AFP reported.
A spokesperson for rebel groups, Yehya al-Aridi, told AFP that the final declaration of the talks would be a general statement “not meant to be signed by the parties” and would be issued by the three organizing countries, including the rebels’ sponsor Turkey.
Muhammad Alloush, heading the opposition delegation, said they were unhappy with the organizers’ final statement and had suggested an alternate monitoring mechanism to track who was responsible for ceasefire violations, Radio Free Europe reported.
Syria state media, meanwhile, reported that Turkey was creating obstacles to reaching a final agreement. Citing an unnamed source close to the Syrian delegation, SANA reported that Turkey was acting stubbornly in the meetings.
Turkey has been a vocal opponent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Turkey is backing the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and has many of its own troops on the ground in northern Syria, clearing its border regions of “terrorists” – naming both ISIS and Kurdish forces. The Turkish army and the FSA are currently fighting to take control of the northern Syrian town of al-Bab from ISIS.
Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told state-run Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that, after defeating ISIS in al-Bab, they will not hand control of the town over to Damascus. “Al-Bab belongs to the people of al-Bab,” he said.
The dominant Kurdish party in northern Syria, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the armed Kurdish People’s Defense Units (YPG), and the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were left out of the Astana talks.
As they were not invited to the talks, they will not be subject to any agreements reached, the YPG said in a statement.
Since we have not been invited to the Astana talks, the decisions taken there will not be binding to us in any way. The decisions to be taken are valid for the participants in the meeting,” the statement signed by ‘YPG Central Command’ read. “We hope that the fighting and bloodshed in Syria will stop, and that the crisis will reach a democratic solution.”
“The Syrian people will decide on the future of the country, not a group which might want to do so unilaterally,” Jaafari said in answer to a question from Rudaw. “The Syrians should decide on any possible projects, rather than a party alone imposing its will. Some Syrian Kurds are against federalism too.”
In the final statement issued by Russia, Iran, and Turkey, the three organizers said they will establish a “trilateral mechanism to observe and ensure full compliance with a ceasefire, prevent any provocations, and determine all modalities of the ceasefire.”
Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov read the joint statement in which they stated they supported “the willingness of the armed opposition groups to participate in the next round of negotiations to be held between the government and the opposition under the UN auspices in Geneva” on February 8.
While the three nations stated their support for the UN-facilitated talks, no concrete steps were made towards reaching a political solution to the war in the two days of meetings in Astana where rebels and regime representatives met through mediators.
Syrian rebels reportedly blamed Damascus and Tehran for the lack of progress, AFP reported.
A spokesperson for rebel groups, Yehya al-Aridi, told AFP that the final declaration of the talks would be a general statement “not meant to be signed by the parties” and would be issued by the three organizing countries, including the rebels’ sponsor Turkey.
Muhammad Alloush, heading the opposition delegation, said they were unhappy with the organizers’ final statement and had suggested an alternate monitoring mechanism to track who was responsible for ceasefire violations, Radio Free Europe reported.
Syria state media, meanwhile, reported that Turkey was creating obstacles to reaching a final agreement. Citing an unnamed source close to the Syrian delegation, SANA reported that Turkey was acting stubbornly in the meetings.
Turkey has been a vocal opponent of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Turkey is backing the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and has many of its own troops on the ground in northern Syria, clearing its border regions of “terrorists” – naming both ISIS and Kurdish forces. The Turkish army and the FSA are currently fighting to take control of the northern Syrian town of al-Bab from ISIS.
Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus told state-run Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that, after defeating ISIS in al-Bab, they will not hand control of the town over to Damascus. “Al-Bab belongs to the people of al-Bab,” he said.
The dominant Kurdish party in northern Syria, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the armed Kurdish People’s Defense Units (YPG), and the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were left out of the Astana talks.
As they were not invited to the talks, they will not be subject to any agreements reached, the YPG said in a statement.
Since we have not been invited to the Astana talks, the decisions taken there will not be binding to us in any way. The decisions to be taken are valid for the participants in the meeting,” the statement signed by ‘YPG Central Command’ read. “We hope that the fighting and bloodshed in Syria will stop, and that the crisis will reach a democratic solution.”
Kurds in northern Syria have established a self-autonomous federal region. The Syrian government representative attending the Astana talks, Bashar Jaafari, said that the Kurds should take painkillers to deal with their idea of federalism, something that will not be implemented throughout the country.
“The Syrian people will decide on the future of the country, not a group which might want to do so unilaterally,” Jaafari said in answer to a question from Rudaw. “The Syrians should decide on any possible projects, rather than a party alone imposing its will. Some Syrian Kurds are against federalism too.”