The heads of delegations of the three guarantor states of the Astana talks, Turkey, Russia and Iran, met with UN Secretary General's Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura in Geneva on 6 March.

At the meeting, the need to give momentum to efforts to advance the political process in Syria was underscored and, in this context, steps to be taken within the framework of the Final Statement of the Sochi Congress were discussed.

At the meeting, the rules of procedure of the Working Group on the “release of detainees/abductees, handover of bodies and identification of missing persons”, which is expected to hold its first meeting on the margins of the Astana Ministerial Meeting, were also discussed.

At the meeting, the need to establish calm on the ground and to improve the humanitarian situation was expressed.

The Turkish side also highlighted the importance of preventing violations on the ground and emphasized that all sides should contribute to de-escalation efforts.