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Discussions enter substantive phase as Syrian talks make progress: envoy

Xinhua, March 17, 2016 Adjust font size:

UN Deputy Special Envoy for Syria Ramzy Ezzeldin Ramzy said Wednesday that Syrian talks had entered the substantive phase and proximity discussions aiming to broker a political solution had made important progress since they started on March 14.

"As you will recall, on Monday, the Syrian government delegation provided us with some ideas on the political process. We reacted to them through seeking further clarifications," said Ramzy following a meeting with the Syrian government delegation headed by Bashar al-Jafaari.

"The discussion was substantive and lays the ground for further substantive discussions in the future," he added.

Ramzy, standing in for UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura who had to travel to Berne, also indicated that the special envoy would be convening with members of the Cairo and Moscow groups later today.

"The process as we see it at this stage is progressing, it reflects the situation on the ground, that there has been quite a large reduction in violence, and that has been reflected in the attitude of various delegations including yesterday with the High Negotiations Committee (HNC) and today the government," Ramzy observed.

This auspicious start stands in stark contrast to a first round of talks which came to an early standstill last month because Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government delegation and the HNC, the Saudi-backed umbrella group for Syrian opposition factions, failed to see eye-to-eye on a number of issues.

Since then, much progress has been made on the humanitarian and cessation of hostilities fronts in the country at war since 2011.

The withdrawal of Russian forces from Syria, a decision taken jointly by Damascus and Moscow according to al-Jafaari, was also welcomed by many as a step in the right direction.

"By and large, we see that we have achieved important progress in just a few days and we look forward to continuing our discussions with all participants in the coming days," Ramzi concluded.

The special envoy is scheduled to meet the HNC delegation tomorrow to continue discussions on issues raised in the first meeting they had on March 15. Endit