New round of Syria talks to begin November 28

GENEVA - 26 October 2017: A new round of UN-led talks aimed at ending Syria's six-year war will take place in Geneva from November 28, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura said Thursday, the Daily Mail reported.

The talks will follow up on a meeting next week in the Kazakh capital of Astana between Russia, Iran and Turkey that is also aimed at achieving a settlement.

De Mistura told the UN Security Council that with the defeat of Daesh in their strongholds of Raqa and Deir Ezzor, the Syrian peace process had reached a "moment of truth."

"We need to get the parties into real negotiations," the envoy said.

Seven rounds of talks have achieved only incremental progress toward a political deal, with negotiations deadlocked over the fate of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The opposition is demanding that any settlement provide for a transition of power to end Assad's rule but as government forces make gains on the battleground, there is little likelihood of a breakthrough on that issue.