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GENEVA, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura on Thursday welcomed the announcement of a nationwide ceasefire between the Syrian government and the country's armed opposition groups, which is to come into effect at 00:00 hours on Friday.
The special envoy, through a statement issued by his spokesperson, noted that a comprehensive cessation of hostilities remains a "cornerstone" for the peace process in the war-torn country.
He wished that the implementation of the agreement will save civilian lives, facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance across Syria, and pave the way for productive talks in Astana.
"These developments should contribute to inclusive and productive intra-Syrian negotiations to be convened under UN auspices on February 8 of 2017," he added.
Earlier this month, the spokesperson of de Mistura announced that the UN intends to convene the Syrian peace talks in Geneva on Feb. 8, 2017.
The Syrian government and the core groups of the so-called moderate opposition reached a ceasefire agreement and expressed their readiness to start intra-Syrian talks on Thursday. The Syrian army then declared that a nationwide cessation of hostilities will go into effect as of midnight Friday.
