Experts from the three guarantor states, Turkey, Russia and Iran, are holding technical talks Wednesday and Thursday in the Kazakh capital as part of efforts to find a permanent political solution to the seven-year Syrian war.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said his country hopes to take an important step in completing the formation of the Syrian constitutional committee at the upcoming meeting in Astana.
"Literally tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, a regular international meeting on Syria will take place in Astana, at which we hope to make important steps towards finalizing the formation of a constitutional committee with the participation of the Syrian government, the opposition and representatives of civil society," Lavrov said.
The formation of Syria's constitutional committee, tasked to later draft a new constitution, is expected to be one of the main issues on the agenda of the upcoming 11th round of Astana talks.
Last month, Damascus rejected any United Nations involvement in establishing the body.
The committee should include 50 members appointed by the regime, 50 from the opposition, and 50 selected by the UN that would include civil society representatives and experts.
On Wednesday, officials from the UN and Jordan would attend the meeting in the Kazakh capital as observers.
The Kazakh Foreign Ministry said a UN delegation headed by Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura will take part in the next Astana meeting.
De Mistura would therefore attend his last round of talks on Syria following the appointment of a new envoy.
“The presence of the Special Envoy in Astana will be in a spirit of not leaving any stone unturned and maximizing the chances of the Istanbul Joint Statement to be upheld,” read a statement from his office.
Meanwhile, the Turkish National Security Council, headed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, held its meeting in the capital Ankara Tuesday to discuss the latest developments in Syria and the situation in the province of Idlib.
A statement issued by the Council said Turkey will not allow a fait accompli in Syria and will use its right to self-defense.
It added that Ankara would continue its determined fight against terrorism to protect its people from threats arising from terror groups along its borders with Syria and Iraq.
