Talks on the Syrian crisis involving Russia, Iran, and Turkey that were due to start in the Kazakh capital, Astana, on Wednesday have been delayed by one day, Kazakhstan's foreign ministry said without explaining the reason for the delay.
Syria's warring sides met for their first talks in nine months on Monday, with their Russian and Turkish backers pushing to cement a ceasefire that could pave the way for political talks.
Calm prevailed most Syrian cities on Saturday, since a nationwide ceasefire was activated at midnight Friday, despite some clashes, a monitor group reported on Saturday.
A nationwide ceasefire in Syria, brokered by Russia and Turkey which back opposing sides in the conflict, got off to a shaky start after midnight on Friday (2200 GMT on Thursday) in the latest attempt to end nearly six years of bloodshed.
Russia and Turkey are seeking a nationwide truce plan for Syria, but there was no confirmation of a deal Thursday, as the incoming UN chief warned the conflict had become a global "cancer".
Turkey, Russia and Iran will hold a meeting in Moscow on Dec 27 to try to find a solution to the five-year conflict in Syria, Ankara said on Wednesday (Dec 14).
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry played down expectations of a new Syrian ceasefire deal with Russia after talks in Geneva aimed at agreeing on how to separate al Qaeda-linked militants from opposition fighters in the besieged city of Aleppo.
Yemen's dominant Shiite Houthi group and its ally of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party welcomed on Tuesday a United Nations-proposed 72-hour ceasefire to facilitate humanitarian aid access to the war-stricken Arab country.
Colombia's President Juan Manuel Santos on Thursday extended his ceasefire with Marxist FARC rebels through the end of the year as he seeks to revive a peace accord to end five decades of war after voters rejected the hard-fought deal in a referendum.
The United States was suspending negotiations with Russia on restoring a ceasefire in Syria, the State Department said on Monday.
The United States and Russia should consider pulling out of Syria if they cannot agree to a ceasefire, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said on Monday.
A seven-day ceasefire declared by the Syrian army expired at midnight, with no immediate announcement of its extension on Monday (Sept 19).
A nationwide ceasefire in Syria brokered by the United States and Russia went into effect on Monday evening, the second attempt this year by Washington and Moscow to halt the five-year-old civil war.
French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday expressed "extremely concerned" about the security situation in eastern Ukraine where clashes continue between Ukrainian forces and militants.
The Philippine government and communist rebels on Friday agreed to implement a "unilateral" ceasefire for an indefinite period after week-long peace talks in Oslo to end Asia's longest-running insurgency.
The communist rebels have urged Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to free more prisoners as peace talks between the government and the rebels resume this week in Oslo, Norway to end Asia's longest communist insurgency, the rebels said in a statement on Monday.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is expected to declare a ceasefire on Saturday to reciprocate a week-long truce that the communist rebels announced, presidential communication secretary Martin Andanar said.
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