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Sputnik, 27 Dec 2016
Kazakhstan is ready to provide a platform for peace talks on Syria and is maintaining contact with Russia and Turkey on this matter, Kazakh Foreign Minister Erlan Idrissov said Tuesday. "There was a general understanding of the possible convenience of using Astana for intra-Syrian talks. Our international partners, namely, Russia and Turkey, are creating the right atmosphere for the talks and determining the agenda. This is what is happening right now, we are staying in touch," Idrissov said. On Monday, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev expressed readiness to host Syrian peace talks in Astana, the city proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier as a suitable neutral territory. Since 2011, Syria has been engulfed in a civil war, following the protests that had turned violent, as part of the so-called Arab Spring. The opposition and Damascus, along with the mediators, have been engaged in UN-brokered settlement talks. The last round of intra-Syrian talks took place in Geneva in April. The Syrian High Negotiations Committee opposition group walked out of the negotiations, citing the continuous fighting in Syria and the lack of progress on humanitarian issues.