US To Hold Russia To Account On Pledge To Start Syria Constitution Talks This Year - Envoy

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th November, 2018) The United States will hold Russia responsible for honoring its pledge to launch Syria's Constitutional Committee by the end of 2018, the Secretary's Special Representative for Syria Engagement, Ambassador James Jeffrey told reporters on Wednesday.

"Our goal, which again was supported by Russia, France, Germany and Turkey and agreed on October 27 in the Istanbul communique, is to establish this constitutional committee by the end of the year," Jeffrey said. "We will hold Russia to account for its commitment to convene the constitutional committee by then, and we expect it to use its influence to bring the Damascus regime to the table."

On October 27, the leaders of Russia, Turkey, Germany and France held a summit in Istanbul aimed at brokering an end to the war in Syria.

In a joint communique issued after the summit, the leaders of the four countries said the Syrian Constitutional Committee, set to draft reforms to the country's constitution, should convene in Geneva by the end of 2018. They also reaffirmed their commitment to a negotiated political process as a the only way to end the conflict.

The idea to form a Syrian Constitutional Committee was first agreed at the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi in January.

Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with the government forces fighting against numerous opposition groups and terrorist organizations. Russia, along with Turkey and Iran, is a guarantor of a countrywide ceasefire in Syria, while it also provides humanitarian assistance to Syrian civilians and is actively engaged in dialogue on settlement to the Syrian crisis.