[Published: Tuesday June 19 2018]
 Turkey, Russia and Iran start talks on Syria constitution
GENEVA 19 Jun (ANA) - Representatives from Russia, Iran and Turkey are meeting in Geneva on Tuesday to discuss the setting up of a constitutional committee tasked with drafting Syria's new constitution.
Members of the Syrian opposition have also arrived in the Swiss city where officials of the three nations acting as guarantors of a ceasefire in the war-torn country are meeting under the auspices of the United Nations.
"I don't expect, let's be frank, a major breakthrough, but I am confident progress is possible," said UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura in a statement to the press ahead of the meetings.
"There is something moving in that direction and we need to capitalise on it."
The meeting in Geneva follows up on the agreement signed at the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi in January, whose final statement called for the creation of a constitutional commission formed by government, opposition and Syrian civil society.
The creation of the constitutional committee would the first step for a political solution of the conflict as mandated by the Security Council resolution 2254.
"Besides government and opposition, it will be important that independents, civil society, experts, and women - and as you know we have been strongly recommending at least 30 percent of women - all find their place into this constitutional committee. We must have an inclusive process," said De Mistura.
"I want to discuss with Iran, Russia and Turkey some preliminary thinking – and hear their own views too – on how the Sochi Final Statement can be given effect to."
De Mistura said the government of Syria had already conveyed to him a list of 50 names. De Mistura said serious efforts were under way to draw the opposition list.
The UN envoy called for the Geneva meeting after concluding a round of consultations that bought him to Turkey, Iran and Egypt to discuss how to speed up the process for the creation of a constitutional committee.(ANA)
FA/ANA/19 June 2018-------
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