Russia has invited the Kurdish-led authorities in northern Syria to its proposed congress of Syria’s rival parties, a senior Kurdish official told Reuters on Tuesday. “We are studying the issue and our stance has been positive so far,” said Badran Jia Kurd, an adviser to the administration that governs Kurdish-led autonomous regions of northern Syria. Throughout the war, the main Syrian Kurdish parties have been left out of peace talks at the request of Turkey, which views the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia as a security threat on its border. Russia may host a congress in mid-November to bring together all of Syria’s groups for national dialogue and work on a new constitution, the RIA news agency said on Monday. Russia’s Hmeymim air base in Syria also might be used, said Alexander Lavrentyev, a senior Russian negotiator on Syria.

Source: Egypt Independent October 31, 2017 12:11 UTC