Kurds will be represented in Syrian constitutional committee, Russian envoy says

Russian Politics & Diplomacy June 19, 2018, 21:00

There will be Kurdish representatives "in any case"

GENEVA, June 19. /TASS/. Moscow and Ankara are in contact concerning Kurdish representation in the Syrian constitutional committee as they will be represented by all means, Russian Presidential Envoy for Syria Alexander Lavrentyev said following a meeting of the guarantor countries of the Syrian ceasefire (Russia, Iran and Turkey) held in Geneva.

"The Kurds will by all means be represented in the Syrian constitutional committee," he said in response to a TASS question.

"There will be Kurdish members of the opposition and government delegation, as well as civil society members. We [call] for refraining from attempts to divide the Kurds into pro-Turkish, pro-Syrian ones and those associated with the People's Protection Units and the Democratic Union Party that Ankara views negatively," he added.

"There will be Kurdish representatives in any case, we have been working closely with our Turkish counterparts in that regard," the Russian envoy said.

The meeting involving Russian, Iranian and Turkish delegations, as well as United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura, lasted for more than two hours. The UN envoy said the meeting had proved to be very useful and fruitful. The meeting was preceded by consultations between the three guarantor states. On Monday, the delegations met with members of Syrian opposition groups.

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