State Department: The United States has not been invited to the peace talks on Syria

The United States has not received an official invitation to participate in peace talks on Syria organized by Russia and Turkey in Astana, Kazakhstan, today said the State Department.

"To my knowledge we have not taken (...) formal invitation," said US State Department spokesman Mark Toner in a press briefing.

From Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to make any comment on a possible invitation to the Washington talks, which will begin on January 23. "I can not comment on. Of course, we are in favor of the widest possible representation of all sides. But I can not answer you specifically right now," said the spokesman told reporters.

When asked by AFP about the issue of the State Department spokesman Marie Sakharov said that the format will have negotiations "are under discussion."

The head of Turkish diplomacy Mevlut Cavusoglu estimated Thursday evening that the US "should certainly be invited" to the talks, saying that Ankara and Moscow agree on this. In late December the Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov had said in the presence of President Vladimir Putin that Moscow is ready to expand the list of participants in the negotiations, calling on Egypt and other Arab countries, and to ensure the participation of the UN.

The new US president Donald Trump will be sworn in on January 20, three days before the start diparagmatefseis in Astana.