Russia, Iran and Turkey have announced they will establish a trilateral mechanism to support the ceasefire in Syria.
In a joint statement issued at the end of talks in Astana, they said the Syrian opposition should take part in Geneva peace talks on the issue.
The delegations of Iran, Russia and Turkey supported the start of negotiations between the government of Syria and armed opposition in Astana on January 23-24, 2017, said a statement read by Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov on Tuesday, RT reported.
Moscow, Tehran and Ankara agreed that the Syrian crisis can only be resolved via a political process and that there can be no military solution.
The sides also agreed to a joint fight against militants from the self-styled Islamic State terrorist group, which alongside Al Nusra Front has not been included in the negotiations.
The trio also suggested separating the terrorists from Syrian armed opposition groups. They also welcomed the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254 on the Syrian crisis, which was adopted in December 2015.
The countries said they support the willingness of the armed opposition groups to take part in the next round of talks, which are scheduled for February 8 in Geneva.
Syrian Ambassador to the UN Bashar Jaafari told reporters it was extremely painful for the Damascus delegation to sit in the same room as Syrians linked to other agendas. He added that it was not the first time they had sat together and that they had to do it for the sake of the Syrian people.
Jaafari called the negotiations a success and expressed support for the joint statement earlier issued by Moscow, Tehran and Ankara.
“Finally we have a consensual paper [the joint statement] agreed upon by everybody,” he said.
Mohammed Alloush, leader of the Jaysh al-Islam alliance, who is heading the delegation of the Syrian armed opposition at the Astana talks, said the militants support a political solution based on UN auspices.
Peace talks on Syria kicked off in Astana on Monday with frosty exchanges between the principal negotiators.
The two-day event was held at the Rixos hotel in Astana, with the Kazakh government providing additional security.
