The official is part of the delegation taking part in the 17th round of talks between the Syrian government and the armed opposition in the capital of Kazakhstan, Astana, with Russia, Turkey and Iran and warrantors of the ceasefire.

Lavrentiev expressed regret that the approaches between the Constitutional Committee of Syria and the rest of the participants in the talks are different and the pressure on Damascus via sanctions is still in force. “But we expect a certain adjustment by next year,” he said.

He also considered that stabilizing the situation in the country without providing humanitarian aid and launching projects for the restoration of the economy will be very hard and will take time.

Participants in the talks will discuss prospects for the work of the Constitutional Committee of Syria in Geneva, the current situation in Syria, and the tasks to be undertaken in order to maintain peace in the de-escalation zones, abiding with the agreements reached during previous talks.

The work group on persons forcibly detained has a meeting scheduled, with attendance of the warrantors, as well as the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

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