Some Countries Hamper Peace Process in Syria - Iranian Foreign Minister

TEHRAN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd November, 2020) Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif has met with the UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen and said that the Syrian crisis had good chances for settlement, but some states intended to undermine the Syrian peace process, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.

"Good opportunities emerged in recent years to end the Syria crisis, but each time we saw some countries try to neutralize the attempts made and to ruin those chances," Zarif said, adding that it was necessary to lift sanctions against the Syrian government and people.

Pedersen briefed Zarif on the status of the Syrian Constitutional Committee and stressed the importance of Iran's role in settling the Syria crisis.

Syria has been facing a period of instability since 2011, with the Assad government fighting a number of opposition groups and terrorist organizations, including the Islamic State (terrorist organization, banned in Russia), the defeat of which in Syria and Iraq was announced at the end of 2017.

The Syrian Constitutional Committee is a product of long-standing efforts by international mediators to reconcile the Syrian government and opposition. The 150-member body with equal representation of the government, opposition and civil society was launched on October 30, 2019, to work toward drafting a new constitution. The committee recently resumed work after a months-long break caused by differences over the agenda and the COVID-19 pandemic.