![SYRIA-KURDS-CONFLICT SYRIA-KURDS-CONFLICT](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/gettyimages-467492500.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
Representatives of the Syrian government and rebel groups were scheduled to come together in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Monday, in the latest attempt to broker a peace deal in Syria, where the six-year civil war has killed more than 300,000 people.
The talks — jointly hosted by Russia, Turkey and Iran — feature a notable absence: the U.S., Bloomberg reports. The American ambassador to Kazakhstan is merely observing the negotiations.
Andrey Kortunov, director general of the Kremlin-backed research group the Russian International Affairs Council, told Bloomberg, “The center of gravity in the Syrian conflict is moving away from great powers to regional players.” He reportedly cited the role of Turkey and Iran, along with rebel-backers Saudi Arabia and Qatar in resolving the conflict.
Read More: The Damascus Suburb That Could Be the Next Key Front in Syria’s War
The talks follow a shaky cease-fire brokered in December by Russia and Turkey, in the wake of the rebels’ defeat in Aleppo, that has mostly remained intact. Earlier cease-fires brokered by the U.S. and Russia, by contrast, had quickly collapsed.
Faysal Itani, an analyst with the Atlantic Council in Washington, D.C., told Bloomberg that the sidelining of the U.S., which he described as “marginal to the war,” would “not prevent the Turks and the Russians coming to and implementing an agreement.”
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Breaking Down the 2024 Election Calendar
- How Nayib Bukele’s ‘Iron Fist’ Has Transformed El Salvador
- What if Ultra-Processed Foods Aren’t as Bad as You Think?
- How Ukraine Beat Russia in the Battle of the Black Sea
- Long COVID Looks Different in Kids
- How Project 2025 Would Jeopardize Americans’ Health
- What a $129 Frying Pan Says About America’s Eating Habits
- The 32 Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2024
Write to Joseph Hincks at joseph.hincks@time.com