Astana hopes US pay attention to calm the situation in Syria

ASTANA_ June 24 2017:Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov expressed hope Saturday that observers participating in the intra-Syrian talks in Astana, including the United States, would pay due attention to the establishment of de-escalation zones in the country.

The minister stressed that the United States' participation at the level of the assistant secretary of state in the talks held in Astana in May showed "the commitment of the new US administration to this process," Sputnik reported.

"The time has come for real actions in order to create de-escalation zones in Syria… We very much hope that all observers, including the United States, will give due attention to this achievement within the framework of the Astana process," Abdrakhmanov added.

At the latest Astana talks on Syria, which took place on May 3-4, Russia, Iran alongside Turkey — the guarantor states of the Syrian ceasefire regime — signed a memorandum on the establishment of four de-escalation zones in Syria.

The four zones span the northwestern Idlib province and parts of the neighboring Latakia, Hama and Aleppo, the north of the central Homs province, Eastern Ghouta near Damascus, as well as southern Daraa and Quneitra regions.