U.N. special envoy on Syria Staffan de Mistura reacts during a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia November 24, 2017. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin

GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura has received assurances that the Syrian government delegation will attend peace talks in Geneva this week, a U.N. spokeswoman said on Tuesday.

Earlier the pro-Damascus Syrian newspaper al-Watan reported that the Syrian government delegation to U.N.-backed peace talks in Geneva this week has not yet left Damascus and may announce on Tuesday whether it will participate.

“The Government delegation has not yet arrived, the Special Envoy received a message that they are planning to arrive tomorrow, which is the 29th of November,” U.N. spokeswoman Alessandra Vellucci told a news briefing in Geneva, declining to give details. “At least we know that they are coming.”