U.N. Syria mediator to attend peace conference in Russia

United Nations Syria mediator Staffan de Mistura will attend a peace conference in Russia next week, the United Nations said on Saturday. "The Secretary-General is confident that the Congress in Sochi will be an important contribution to a revived intra-Syrian talks process under the auspices of the United Nations in Geneva," U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.  Western powers and some Arab states believe the conference in Sochi is an attempt to create a separate peace process that would undermine the United Nations' efforts and lay the groundwork for a solution more suitable to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his allies Russia and Iran.

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