Syrian government, opposition and civil society delegations were resuming meetings Monday in Geneva to discuss a possible new constitution - a step seen by the UN mediator as a prospective "door-opener" to a final resolution of the country's devastating nine-year civil war.
The UN's Syria envoy, Geir Pedersen, is hosting the three, 15-member teams from Syria, while major regional and world powers - Iran, Russia, Turkey and the United States - are expected to be present on the sidelines during the week-long gathering at the UN offices in Geneva.
With a fragile cease-fire largely holding in the rebel-held region of Idlib, Pedersen said last week he is hoping to build "trust and confidence" in a UN-led process that has produced few concrete results so far.