Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
World leaders: Syrians must lead peace efforts
U.N.-backed role seen for return of refugees
ISTANBUL — The leaders of Turkey, Russia, France and Germany said at a summit on Saturday that Syrians must lead efforts to make peace in their war-torn country, a challenge that was highlighted by the absence of any Syrian groups from the Istanbul talks.
Meeting in an Ottoman-era mansion, the leaders set aside divisions over Syrian President Bashar Assad to agree on broad goals, including the eventual, voluntary return of millions of refugees who fled a conflict that has lasted more than seven years and killed over 400,000 people.
“There will be no real, sustainable, credible return of the refugees if the political process is not initiated,” French President Emmanuel Macron said.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed “preconditions” for the return of refugees, which must be closely coordinated with the U.N. refugee agency.
“From our point of view, it is necessary that there be assurances that there will not be persecution or arrests, that certain fundamental humanitarian conditions are fulfilled — that a certain humanitarian infrastructure is there,” she said.
The leaders spoke at a news conference that included Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
A final statement called for “an inclusive, Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political process,” and the convening of a committee by the end of the year to work on constitutional reform as a prelude to U.N.-backed free and fair elections.
The leaders noted the cease-fire in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib, which they hope can provide some momentum for peace efforts.
The summit comes amid Turkish threats of a new military operation across the border into northern Syria, in zones held by Syrian Kurdish fighters.
Turkey considers the Syrian Kurdish militia, which is backed by the U.S., to be terrorists and a part of the Kurdish insurgency within Turkey.