Syrian Peace Talks Underway

United Nations Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria Staffan de Mistura speaks to media during a news conference in Geneva, Jan. 15, 2015.

Voice of America: New Effort to Find Peace in Syria Gets Under Way

GENEVA — The United Nations is making a renewed effort to find a political solution to Syria’s four-year old civil war as casualties continue to mount. Syria’s warring parties have begun informal consultations with the U.N. Special Envoy on Syria in hopes of restarting stalled peace talks.

Successive efforts to reach a peace accord have all ended in failure. So, U.N. Special Syria Envoy Staffan de Mistura is being cautious and deliberately dampening expectations about the outcome of these talks.

He prefers to characterize them as serious consultations. During the next five or six weeks, he says he and his deputy will engage in one-to-one structured discussions with as many actors involved in the Syrian conflict as possible.

WNU Editor: The Syrian rebel commanders have been invited .... but no one is saying that they have accepted the invitation.

More News On The Start Of U.N. Brokered Syrian Peace Talks

Syrian opposition groups invited to UN talks in Geneva -- Al Arabiya
Syria conflict: Fresh UN-backed talks begin in Geneva -- BBC
U.N. envoy invites Syria opposition fighters to Geneva talks -- Al Bawaba
U.N. kicks off Syria talks, hopes opposition fighters will come -- Reuters
De Mistura to kick off separate talks with rival Syria sides -- Daily Star
ISIS, Al Qaeda cast a pall over Syria peace talks in Geneva -- FOX News
UN Syria envoy opens wide-ranging talks in Geneva -- Expatica