Syria envoy says Geneva talks to focus on transition
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The UN envoy to Syria says negotiating a political transition for the war-torn country will be the sole item on the agenda for upcoming talks between the government and opposition in Geneva.
Staffan De Mistura emphatically rejected any change to the agenda, saying it would open a "Pandora's box" of stalling and time-wasting. "Geneva will not be about the procedure, but about the future," he told reporters in joint press conference with Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano, in Rome.
The envoy said the agenda is fixed in UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which mandates a new form of governance for Syria, a new constitution, and new elections. The resolution was adopted unanimously by the Security Council in 2015. The Syrian government has previously rejected such formulations, complicating efforts aimed at ending the conflict. The government holds the upper hand in Syria more than a year after a sweeping Russian intervention turned the tide of the nearly six-year war in its favor.
