UN envoy says fifth round of Syrian talks set for March 23

United Nations mediator for Syria Staffan de Mistura attends a news conference in the context of the resumption of intra-Syrian talks at the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, February 23, 2017. [Photo/Agencies]

UNITED NATIONS - UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura told reporters on Wednesday that a new round of Syrian peace talks is set to take place on March 23 in Geneva.

De Mistura urged a solid ceasefire in Syria to guarantee fundamental conditions for peace talks and appealed for all Syrians and parties involved to "abandon the fantasies" of a military victory.

He said the fifth round of talks should build on the outcomes of the fourth round and "no one can start trying to go backwards."

The fourth round of Syrian peace talks ended on Friday with no breakthrough achieved towards reaching a political solution to end the country's six-year war.

After a closed door discussion, Matthew Rycroft, Security Council president for this month, said the 15-nation council supports De Mistura for his agenda for the new talks and meanwhile expressed its concerns over ceasefire violations and the humanitarian crisis in Syria.