Syria could take four years to hold elections

In his first mention of the election process in Syria, Syrian interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa set a four-year deadline for the country to elect a new government. Speaking on Al Arabiya on December 29, al-Sharaa said the process of drafting a constitution could take up to three years and it would take another year for Syrians to feel the change, before elections could be held.

The statement came as the interim government in Damascus seeks to reassure regional and international partners that the process of forming a new government will be transparent and fair. Al-Sharaa, head of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) armed group and other allied groups that ousted former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said on December 8 that HTS would be dissolved at an upcoming national dialogue conference to pave the way for stabilizing the country, according to Reuters.

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Regarding the situation in northeastern Syria, Mr. al-Sharaa said that dialogues are taking place with all sides to resolve the remaining conflicts, including tensions between Kurdish militias in Syria and Türkiye. Also in the interview on December 29, Mr. al-Sharaa affirmed that Syria shares strategic interests with Russia, which maintains two large military bases in the country.

TASS quoted Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on December 29 that the status of Russian bases in Syria will be the subject of upcoming negotiations with the new government in Damascus. Syria's interim leader also hopes that the US will soon lift sanctions imposed on Syria.

HTS members march on December 27.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/syria-co-the-mat-4-nam-de-to-chuc-bau-cu-185241230234440448.htm