UN supports creation of Syrian constitutional committee

By Umar Farooq

WASHINGTON (AA) - The UN Security Council on Wednesday called on Damascus to work with UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura on the creation of a constitutional committee.

“Members of the council have reiterated their full support for his leadership to facilitate a viable enduring political solution to the Syrian conflict,” Olof Skoog, Sweden’s UN Representative, said in informal comments to the media after a Security Council briefing by de Mistura on the situation in Syria.

The briefing included mention of UN Resolution 2254, which calls for a ceasefire along with a political settlement in Syria.

The next meeting on the crisis in Syria will take place from July 30-31 in Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi between Russia, Iran and Turkey, where de Mistura will be discussing the constitutional committee as well as the Syrian conflict in general.

Asked whether the committee would be formed before the UN General Assembly convenes in New York in September, Skoog said "that would be an extremely useful timeline to have".

He did not answer questions about specifics on the timeline for the creation of the committee.