The United Nations special envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said that the next round of talks in Geneva, scheduled for the 23rd of February, would aim to see if there was a window for political negotiations to advance, while warning that the current residing nation-wide cessation of hostilities may well collapse unless a political horizon would be established. “What I do know, that we have to push for the momentum because even a ceasefire with two strong guarantors cannot hold too long if there is not a political horizon.” De Mistura also stressed, during his address to the Munich Security Conference, that he believed that implementing a political solution in Syria would help defeat the Islamic State. “If you want to defeat Daesh we need, even if it looks complicated, even if it looks remote, a political inclusive, credible solution in Syria. And that’s the challenge that we are going to face in the next few weeks. Thank you,” added de Mistura.
