Critical mass pivotal to resume Syria peace talks: UN envoy

The United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Syria said Thursday the resumption of Syrian peace talks seeking to broker an end to the five-year conflict could be catalysed by the United States and Russia seeing eye to eye on a number of key issues.

"I think the next few days are crucial to know where they stand. When the two co-chairs agree on something, it helps both the political and humanitarian process a lot," Staffan de Mistura highlighted.

The special envoy indicated that a lot of informal diplomacy was taking place between both countries who act as co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG). The target date for resumed talks is in August.

"The third round of talks are meant to be a credible beginning of a roadmap towards political transition, so they need to be well prepared," he added.

The official has long talked about the importance of reaching critical mass so the Syrian government and its High Negotiations Committee counterpart can return to the negotiating table which has remained empty since talks were put on hold in April this year.

De Mistura also highlighted the need to find realistic formulas for the political transition as soon as possible.

While this year's humanitarian efforts have yielded unprecedented levels of assistance, the UN has warned that more needs to be done to cater to all those living in hard-to-reach and besieged areas.

Latest UN figures reveal that over 978,000 people have received multi-sectoral assistance since relief operations kicked off in February after a short-lived truce was brokered.

Ongoing violence and lack of cooperation is threatening to undo the headway made this year however, with Eastern Aleppo on the brink of becoming the 19th and largest location on the UN's besieged area list. Endit