The guarantor countries of the Syrian truce - Russia, Iran, Turkey - have agreed to invite Iraq and Lebanon as observers in the Astana process for Syria, TASS reported quoting the final statement of the guarantors, distributed on Friday following the results of the international meeting on Syria.
“We discussed the issue of increasing the number of observers of the Astana format and agreed to invite Syria’s neighbors — Iraq and Lebanon — to join the Astana process,” stated First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mukhtar Tleuberdi.
The guarantor countries also declared their determination to oppose the separatist plans for Syria.
“We rejected all attempts to create new realities on earth under the pretext of fighting terrorism and expressed their determination to resist the separatist plans aimed at undermining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as the national security of neighboring countries,” the document said.
The parties noted that only under these conditions it is possible to ensure security in the north-east of the republic.
“We agreed to continue consultations on the north-east of Syria and noted in this connection that the provision of stability and security in this region is possible only on the basis of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country,” the statement said.
The parties also confirmed their intention to continue cooperation on the elimination of terrorists in the Idlib de-escalation zone.
“We reviewed in detail the situation in the Idlib de-escalation zone, welcomed the steps taken to implement the Memorandum and confirmed our determination to fully implement the stabilization agreements in Idlib, including coordinated patrols and effective functioning of the joint Iran-Russia-Turkey coordination center,” the document noted
The guarantor countries reaffirmed their continued commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria, as well as to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.
