Rebel losses and rival talks overshadow new Syrian peace effort in Geneva
Parallel talks in Kazakhstan brokered by Russia, Iran and Turkey have secured a landmark deal creating ‘de-escalation’ zones
Beirut, Lebanon — A new round of Syrian peace talks opens in Geneva on Tuesday, overshadowed by a competing process in Astana and with rebels reeling from a major setback in Damascus. Since it started in March 2011, Syria’s conflict has killed more than 320,000 people, displaced millions and ravaged the economy and infrastructure. Efforts to end the war are now proceeding along two rival tracks: the formal political peace process hosted at UN headquarters in Geneva and, since January, parallel talks in Kazakhstan brokered by Russia, Iran and Turkey. Observers say the UN appears to be scrambling to match Astana’s momentum after a landmark deal signed in Kazakhstan on May 4 that would create four "de-escalation" zones across some of Syria’s bloodiest battlegrounds. However, UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura stressed on Monday the Geneva talks were working "in tandem" with the Astana process. He has said the coming talks, which are expected to last just four days, aimed to "hit the i...
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