GENEVA, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations' new Special Envoy for Syria, Geir O. Pedersen, said Friday he saw the constitutional committee for the beleaguered country as a potential door opener for the political process.
He was speaking at his first press briefing at the European headquarters of the United Nations here since he took up his post on Jan. 7.
"I see the constitutional committee as a potential door opener for the political process, but in parallel with this, we also need to work on other issues," said Pedersen, who was previously the Norwegian ambassador to China.
The constitutional committee is expected to have 150 members from the Syrian government, the opposition and civil society.
Russia, Turkey and Iran will help Syria establish the committee, which will be tasked with carrying out constitutional reforms in the country, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday after a meeting with his Turkish and Iranian counterparts in Sochi.
According to the UN special envoy, it is not possible now to say when the constitutional committee will meet, but he envisages it meeting in Geneva, where Pedersen will continue the work of his predecessor, Staffan de Mistura.
De Mistura was the longest-serving of three UN special envoys trying to facilitate an end to the more than seven-year-long Syrian conflict.
His predecessors were former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi.
Pedersen said that during his recent travels, he told the Syrian government and the opposition Syrian National Council as well as "all Syrians" that he was trying to "actualize the vision of a future Syria based on Security Council Resolution 2254 in all its aspects."
The UN envoy said he had emphasized respect for unity, territorial integrity and the sovereignty of Syria.
"I have stressed that confidence building is needed, that we need ceasefires to be respected, and of course that we will continue to fight terrorism," said Pedersen.
