(File photo)U.N. mediator Staffan de Mistura attends a news conference after a round of meetings during the Syria peace talks at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, April 22, 2016 (Reuters)
Talks between U.S. and Russian officials this week are "crucial" for restoring a ceasefire in Syria, the United Nations Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura said on Tuesday.
"The Special Envoy greatly regrets intensified fighting and the grave humanitarian situation. A political process and political solution is the only way out of the crisis," his spokeswoman Jessy Chahine told a news briefing in Geneva.
"Discussions between the Russian Federation and United States this week are crucial to efforts to restore the cessation of hostilities," she said, also reiterating his call for a 48-hour humanitarian pause in the divided northern city of Aleppo.
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