The United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Syria said on Sunday the government and the foreign-backed opposition co-chairs of the Syrian Constitutional Committee agreed to draft a new constitution.

“UN Special Envoy for #Syria @GeirOPedersen says ahead week-long Geneva talks of the Syrian Constitutional Committee: “The two co-chairs now agree that we will not only prepare for constitutional reform but we will prepare and start drafting constitutional reform,” Stephanie Nebehay, senior Reuters reporter in Geneva said on her Twitter account.

Comprising 45 representatives of the Syrian government, opposition, and civil society, the drafting committee has a mandate to map out a new basic law leading to UN-supervised elections, Reuters reported.

Special Envoy Geir Pederson said the Syrian co-chairs had agreed to “prepare and start drafting constitutional reform” after meeting for the first time ahead of week-long discussions.

As the sixth round in two years – the first since January for the drafting committee – the talks will cover “clear principles,” Pederson said, according to Reuters.

Source: Reuters