DUSHANBE, 04.01.2017. /NIAT “Khovar”/. The talks on the settlement of the Syrian armed conflict will begin in Astana, Kazakhstan, on January 23, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Wednesday. It was reported by TASS.

“The negotiations will begin in Astana on January 23. We will continue work over the political settlement [of the Syrian crisis]”, — the Turkish foreign minister said in an interview with the Anadolu news agency.

“If we are unable to stop the ceasefire violations, the Astana meeting may fail”, — the minister said.

The Turkish foreign minister also said that Russian experts would arrive in Turkey on January 9-10 to discuss the forthcoming inter-Syrian consultations in the capital of Kazakhstan.

“Russian officials will visit Turkey on January 9-10 to discuss the framework for Syrian peace talks”, — Reuters news agency quoted the Turkish foreign minister as saying.

Recall that in mid-December, Russian and Turkish Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed with President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev the possibility of holding a meeting in Astana between the warring parties to the Syrian armed conflict.

Nazarbayev approved this idea, saying his country “supports from the outset the international efforts aimed at the peaceful settlement of the conflict in Syria”.