Syria Talks in Kazakh Capital Complement Geneva Peace Process - Kazakhstan's President

NUR-SULTAN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd November, 2019) The Syrian peace process hosted by Kazakhstan's capital of Nur-Sultan, formerly known as Astana, complements political process in Geneva, the Central Asian nation's president said Friday.

"Kazakhstan is a platform for the Astana process on Syria and, incidentally, complements the Geneva process," Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said after meeting with Swiss President Ueli Maurer.

Astana peace talks on Syria were launched six years into the Syrian conflict and led to an intra-Syrian conference in January 2018, which agreed to form the Syrian Constitutional Committee.

Maurer came to Kazakhstan on Friday after a one-day trip to Russia. Syria featured prominently during his meetings with presidents of both countries. In Kazakhstan, he was to discuss conditions for intensifying economic ties.

Speaking at a press conference after their meeting, Tokayev told reporters that Switzerland was his country's third biggest investor and one of its top 10 trade partners.