Iran, Russia, Turkey agree on mechanism to ensure Syria truce

Syrian peace talks have wrapped up in Kazakhstan’s capital of Astana, with Iran, Russia and Turkey agreeing on the establishment of a trilateral mechanism to support the ceasefire in the country and monitor possible violations.

The final joint statement, which was read by Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov on Tuesday afternoon (local time), underlined the importance of maintaining the national sovereignty of Syria.

The trio stressed that there was no military solution to the Syria conflict and it can be only resolved through a political process based on full implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2254.

The three countries also agreed to work out a trilateral agreement with the goal of supervising the ceasefire in the Arab country to guarantee all parties’ commitment to Syria truce and prevent possible violations of ceasefire.

Elsewhere in the statement, Iran, Russia and Turkey backed participation of Syria’s armed opposition in UN-sponsored negotiations on Syria, which are scheduled to be held in the Swiss city of Geneva next month.

The statement said the three countries “support the willingness of the armed opposition groups to participate in the next round of negotiations” under UN auspices in Geneva on February 8.

The opposition has reportedly expressed dissatisfaction over the statement.

They also reaffirmed their commitment to protecting sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Syria as a democratic country.