By Bayram Altug
GENEVA (AA) – Geneva talks between Turkish, Russian and Iranian delegations on Sept. 10 and 11 will be a “moment of truth” for a political process in Syria, UN’s special envoy for Syria said on Tuesday.
Staffan de Mistura held a news conference at the UN Office in Swiss city of Geneva, where he said that they are worried about Syria's Idlib over a possible operation by the Assad regime and its supporters.
Civilians living in Syria's northwestern Idlib province, fearing a possible assault by the Assad regime and its allies, are looking to Turkey to ensure the region’s safety.
Idlib residents are urging Turkey to increase the number of observation points in the area with a view to protecting civilians from an attack they believe is imminent.
Located near the Turkish border, Idlib is home to more than three million Syrians, many of whom fled from other cities following earlier attacks by regime forces.
In May, Idlib was designated a “de-escalation zone” — in which acts of aggression are expressly forbidden — as part of ongoing peace talks in Kazakh capital Astana.
Mistura emphasized that the upcoming Geneva talks will be a “moment of truth” for the Syrian political process and they don't want any dramatic things happen in Idlib.
He said that he believes negotiations with Syrian opposition and the Assad regime would restart if next week's Geneva talks were fruitful.
Two separate talks will be held in Geneva next week.
In addition to the trilateral talks on Sept. 10 and 11, there will be another consultation meeting among delegations from Egypt, France, Germany, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, U.K. and U.S. on September 14.
Mistura said that he hopes these talks can revive the political process in Syria. The establishment of Syria's Constitutional Committee is important for the country's peace process, he added.
