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1st LD Writethru: UN chief calls for Syrian talks to be held as scheduled

Xinhua, January 15, 2016 Adjust font size:

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday urged to convene Syrian political talks on Jan. 25 as planned earlier, stressing "we must not let regional tensions derail our quest to end this war."

"My Special Envoy (Staffan de Mistura) and I continue to press for the convening of a further round of political talks on January 25th," said Ban when he briefed the UN General Assembly meeting on priorities for 2016, urging all parties to build on the momentum generated by Security Council resolution 2254.

The Security Council resolution, adopted in December 2015, endorsed an international roadmap for a Syrian-led political transition in order to end the conflict in the country, which calls for Syrian peace talks to begin in early January.

"Moreover, we must not let regional tensions derail our quest to end this war," Ban added.

Iran and Saudi Arabia are currently locked in a diplomatic row over Sunni-majority Riyadh's execution of a prominent Shiite cleric, along with 46 others over terror charges.

The executions have sent large number of Iranians onto the street, while some of them stormed Saudi diplomatic missions in Tehran, the capital of Iran, and in the northeastern city of Mashhad. Later, Riyadh cut its diplomatic ties with Tehran over the attacks on its embassy. The row between the two regional powers has raised concern about whether the Syrian and Yemeni peace process will be affected.

The UN chief also called for "immediate, unconditional and unimpeded humanitarian access" in Syria, stressing that "the use of food as weapon of war is a war crime." Endit