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China hopes Syrian talks will resume

Xinhua, February 4, 2016 Adjust font size:

China on Thursday called for efforts to keep peace talks going as they are the only realistic way to solve the Syrian issue.

The Office of the UN Special Envoy for Syria issued a statement late Wednesday night, saying that the talks are to resume in Geneva no later than Feb. 25 and possibly "much earlier." UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura then announced that the date for the resumption of the talks had been set for Feb. 25.

It was a constructive beginning that the government and the opposition of Syria are able to come back to the negotiation table two years after the Geneva II Conference, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Lu Kang told a regular press conference.

Lu said the recommencement of peace talks is the first step.

Staffan de Mistura had met separately with representatives of the Syrian government and the main opposition since the talks began on Jan. 29.

This is the third time rival parties have come to the negotiating table after meetings in Geneva in 2012 and 2014 failed to resolve the crisis.

The peace talks aim to find a lasting solution to the problems of Syria, a country which has been at war for almost five years. Endi