The fifteenth round of the International Meeting on Syria in Astana format was held on 16-17 February 2021 in Sochi, Russian Federation. In the meeting, current situation in the political process within the context of the Constitutional Committee as well as the developments in Idlib and the east of Euphrates were mainly discussed.

The Parties discussed in detail the fifth round of the Constitutional Committee`s Drafting Commission held on 25-29 January 2021 in Geneva and reaffirmed their determination to support the Constitutional Committee`s work through continuous interaction with the Syrian parties, Committee delegates and the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Syria in order to ensure its sustainable and effective functioning.

The Parties also underscored the importance of adhering to the Terms of Reference and Core Rules of Procedure in order to make progress in Committee’s work and to implement its mandate of preparing and drafting a constitutional reform. Within this framework, we strongly expressed the necessity for a structured work plan and methodology for an efficient functioning of the Committee.

In the meeting, separatist agendas that pose threat to the political unity and territorial integrity of Syria and the national security of neighboring countries were rejected once again, and unacceptability of opportunistic and illegitimate attempts on the ground under the pretext of combating terrorism was underlined. Increasing terrorist acts in Syria which resulted in loss of innocent lives were condemned and the concern on rising attacks against civilians in the northeast of Syria was expressed.

Commitment to maintain calm on the ground by implementing agreements on Idlib was reiterated by the Parties. We emphasized our expectation of cessation of ceasefire violations and attacks targeting civilians.

The Working Group on the Release of Detainees/Abductees, Handover of Bodies and Identification of Missing Persons also convened in the margins of the meeting. The future activities to develop cooperation regarding mutual and simultaneous release of persons detained by the opposition groups and the regime was also discussed in the meeting.