ST. PETERSBURG, December 26. /TASS/. Kazakhstan is prepared to receive all parties involved in the negotiations on Syria in Astana and create all necessary conditions for that, President Nursultan Nazarbayev said at a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on Monday.
"Concerning your proposal, Kazakhstan is ready to receive all parties involved in the talks in Astana. We discussed the issue yesterday with you, Erdogan and Rouhani. They agree, we will create all conditions to make sure that they work and meet," Kazakhstan’s president said.
Two weeks ago, Russian and Turkish Presidents, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, discussed with Kazakhstan’s President, Nursultan Nazabayev, the possibility of holding a meeting of the parties to the Syrian conflict in Astana. Nazarbayev approved the idea saying that Kazakhstan "has supported international efforts aimed at resolving the Syrian crisis by peaceful means from the very beginning."
Bouthiana Shaaban, the Syrian president’s adviser, noted that the Syrian leadership considers the talks in Astana the beginning of a new stage in defusing the crisis by political means. According to Shaaban, the Syrian government is ready for dialogue with any (opposition) forces willing to find a political solution to the crisis.
Qadri Jamil, leader of the Popular Front for Change and Liberation and representative of the "Moscow group" of the Syrian opposition, earlier told TASS that the talks between the Syrian government and opposition in Astana will be held prior to the intra-Syrian contacts in Geneva (on February 8) and will take place tentatively in the second half of January 2017.