UN meeting on new Syrian constitution set for next month

Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura has been tasked with setting up a committee to write a new constitution for the war-ravaged country.

Published: 24th August 2018 09:42 PM  |   Last Updated: 24th August 2018 09:42 PM   |  A+A-

By PTI

GENEVA: The UN peace envoy for Syria will host Iran, Russia and Turkey for talks on drafting a new Syrian constitution on September 11-12, a United Nations spokeswoman said today.

Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura has been tasked with setting up a committee to write a new constitution for the war-ravaged country.

The main foreign powers backing the project are Syrian government allies Russia and Iran, as well as Turkey, which supports some opposition groups.

Representatives of the three nations will meet de Mistura over two days at the UN's European headquarters in Geneva, spokeswoman Alessandra Vellucci told reporters.

De Mistura has said he wants to have the constitutional committee in place before world leaders meet at the General Assembly in New York in late September.

That will likely require further talks, including with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government, but Vellucci said she had no details of additional meetings next month.

De Mistura's previous efforts to negotiate an end to the Syrian conflict have achieved no breakthroughs.

More than 350,000 people have been killed and millions displaced since Syria's war started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.

Stay up to date on all the latest World news with The New Indian Express App. Download now

Comments

Disclaimer : We respect your thoughts and views! But we need to be judicious while moderating your comments. All the comments will be moderated by the newindianexpress.com editorial. Abstain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or inflammatory, and do not indulge in personal attacks. Try to avoid outside hyperlinks inside the comment. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines.

The views expressed in comments published on newindianexpress.com are those of the comment writers alone. They do not represent the views or opinions of newindianexpress.com or its staff, nor do they represent the views or opinions of The New Indian Express Group, or any entity of, or affiliated with, The New Indian Express Group. newindianexpress.com reserves the right to take any or all comments down at any time.