{"id":22687,"date":"2016-02-01T08:11:26","date_gmt":"2016-02-01T08:11:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/opposition-finally-agrees-to-join-syrian-peace-talks-in-geneva\/"},"modified":"2026-01-21T22:29:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T22:29:11","slug":"opposition-finally-agrees-to-join-syrian-peace-talks-in-geneva","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/opposition-finally-agrees-to-join-syrian-peace-talks-in-geneva\/","title":{"rendered":"Opposition finally agrees to join Syrian peace talks in Geneva"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Efforts to launch talks aimed at ending the war in <a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/syria\" data-link-name=\"auto-linked-tag\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Syria<\/a> have got off to a confusing start in Geneva but the opposition finally announced it had decided to take part following a first meeting between the UN envoy and representatives of Bashar al-Assad\u2019s government.<\/p>\n<p>The late-night decision by the opposition\u2019s negotiating committee, meeting in<a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/saudiarabia\" data-link-name=\"auto-linked-tag\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Saudi Arabia<\/a>, came after hours of uncertainty and heavy diplomatic pressure on Friday, with rumour and speculation engulfing the Palais des Nations. Holding a few meetings looked like a significant achievement.<\/p>\n<p>Ahmad Fawzi, the UN\u2019s spokesman, hinted at the fast-moving and chaotic nature of the talks, telling reporters: \u201cI don\u2019t have a time, I don\u2019t have the exact location, and I can\u2019t tell you anything about the delegation.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"element element-rich-link element--thumbnail element-rich-link--upgraded\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-2 | 1\">\n<div class=\"rich-link tone-news--item \"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy, held his first session of \u201cproximity talks\u201d with Syrian government delegates, who flew in from Damascus before any opposition representatives had arrived from Riyadh. The opposition had been in the Saudi capital debating whether to attend, due to their demand for an end to airstrikes and sieges not having been met. \u201cIt\u2019s a mess,\u201d shrugged one official.<\/p>\n<p>Later, the Italian-Swedish UN veteran was due to see Syrian \u201cindependents\u201d backed by <a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/russia\" data-link-name=\"auto-linked-tag\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">Russia<\/a> but considered too close to Assad to be part of the opposition. Syrian civil society activists were the next to be invited to emphasise the plight of the ordinary people caught up in the war.<\/p>\n<p>On the broad plaza opposite the ornate 1930s building, its driveway flanked colourfully by the flags of UN member states, those realities were on grim display. Activists wearing chefs\u2019 whites served up \u201csiege soup\u201d \u2013 a non-haute cuisine concoction of grass and leaves and a reminder of the only fare available to tens of thousands of <a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/jan\/11\/madaya-more-starvation-deaths-as-aid-convoys-head-to-besieged-syrian-town\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"in-body-link\">people who live surrounded by government forces<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"img-2\" class=\"element element-image img--landscape element--supporting  fig--narrow-caption fig--has-shares \" data-component=\"image\" data-media-id=\"a04e84a5dc827a441d864f396d4378e705e31182\">\n<div class=\"u-responsive-ratio\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/a04e84a5dc827a441d864f396d4378e705e31182\/0_0_4096_2728\/master\/4096.jpg?w=380&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=bbaaa12b3d8eb85a054d2493f41a7da6 380w\" media=\"(min-width: 1300px)\" sizes=\"380px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/a04e84a5dc827a441d864f396d4378e705e31182\/0_0_4096_2728\/master\/4096.jpg?w=300&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=0252447cd17f76ccb4849ecbd85e28fc 300w\" media=\"(min-width: 980px)\" sizes=\"300px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/a04e84a5dc827a441d864f396d4378e705e31182\/0_0_4096_2728\/master\/4096.jpg?w=620&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=8ac0efe7ab0e090dd2c0102b81b044a2 620w\" media=\"(min-width: 660px)\" sizes=\"620px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/a04e84a5dc827a441d864f396d4378e705e31182\/0_0_4096_2728\/master\/4096.jpg?w=605&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=dab81629ae8bd5b66a8242f327419a1e 605w\" media=\"(min-width: 480px)\" sizes=\"605px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/a04e84a5dc827a441d864f396d4378e705e31182\/0_0_4096_2728\/master\/4096.jpg?w=445&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=894c8e489837aafd9590de377887e345 445w\" media=\"(min-width: 0px)\" sizes=\"445px\" \/><\/picture><\/div><figcaption class=\"caption caption--img caption caption--img\"><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe international community needs to push to create pressure on Assad and the Russians to make a political solution possible,\u201d urged Salma Kahaly, an exiled Damascene from the PlanetSyria coalition. \u201cSyrians want these negotiations to work because there is no military solution. But sieges are a war crime, not a negotiating tactic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The latest news from Syria was gloomily routine: in the Damascus area barrel bombs targeted Daraya and Muadamiyat al-Sham. In northern Latakia, fighting continued between rebels and government forces <a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/jan\/20\/russian-airstrikes-in-syria-have-killed-more-than-1000-civilians\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"in-body-link\">supported by Russian airstrikes<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Reports from the Saudi capital described an anguished but determined mood.<a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/jan\/29\/syria-hopes-for-peace-look-slim-ahead-un-brokered-talks\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"in-body-link\">Riyadh Hijab<\/a>, head of the opposition negotiations body, had flatly refused to start talks with De Mistura until the UN\u2019s own commitment to humanitarian access and a cessation of attacks had been implemented.<\/p>\n<p>Philip Hammond, the British foreign secretary, telephoned and urged Hijab to turn up, arguing that failure to do so would hand Assad \u201ca propaganda coup\u201d. British, French, and American officials and advisers hammered home the same point. The result was a formal announcement that the opposition had \u201cdecided to participate in the Geneva talks after receiving American and <a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/unitednations\" data-link-name=\"auto-linked-tag\" data-component=\"auto-linked-tag\">United Nations<\/a>guarantees.\u201d De Mistura called that \u201ca good signal\u201d. The two sides are still unlikely to meet face to face.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"img-3\" class=\"element element-image img--landscape element--supporting  fig--narrow-caption fig--has-shares \" data-component=\"image\" data-media-id=\"239e32c170ec90038529a15f31b7a3e7eaf9bcb1\">\n<div class=\"u-responsive-ratio\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/239e32c170ec90038529a15f31b7a3e7eaf9bcb1\/0_138_3726_2236\/master\/3726.jpg?w=380&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=7171c0046e42b3171f3ce4972ded2781 380w\" media=\"(min-width: 1300px)\" sizes=\"380px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/239e32c170ec90038529a15f31b7a3e7eaf9bcb1\/0_138_3726_2236\/master\/3726.jpg?w=300&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=6ba499961241fcd7da1a15213439b762 300w\" media=\"(min-width: 980px)\" sizes=\"300px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/239e32c170ec90038529a15f31b7a3e7eaf9bcb1\/0_138_3726_2236\/master\/3726.jpg?w=620&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=01f1f580655003ce45c5566fde398ac2 620w\" media=\"(min-width: 660px)\" sizes=\"620px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/239e32c170ec90038529a15f31b7a3e7eaf9bcb1\/0_138_3726_2236\/master\/3726.jpg?w=605&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=3efb6bc893c31a37f2bf7998edf53df1 605w\" media=\"(min-width: 480px)\" sizes=\"605px\" \/><source srcset=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/239e32c170ec90038529a15f31b7a3e7eaf9bcb1\/0_138_3726_2236\/master\/3726.jpg?w=445&amp;q=85&amp;auto=format&amp;sharp=10&amp;s=74a58c0a19472ae1ceb758d4c69f9b20 445w\" media=\"(min-width: 0px)\" sizes=\"445px\" \/><\/picture><\/div><figcaption class=\"caption caption--img caption caption--img\"><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Syrian government team, led by the country\u2019s UN ambassador, Bashar al-Jaafari, said nothing either on arrival at the Palais des Nations or when it left. But it will not be shy about presenting its case \u2013 especially in attacking its opponents as \u201cterrorists\u201d. Damascus is keen to emphasise that the chief opposition negotiator is an official of the Saudi-backed Jaysh al-Islam group \u2013 something that many secular anti-Assad Syrians also dislike.<\/p>\n<p>Lobbying and arm-twisting went on all day. Jaafari met the Russian ambassador to the UN, Alexey Borodavkin, before his session with De Mistura \u2013 a sign of the close coordination between Moscow and Damascus that parallels the relations between the Syrian opposition and the western and Arab governments that support it.<\/p>\n<p>Syria apart, it was a normal day for the UN. Experts from different agencies gave briefings on migration, health and a campaign to curb the portrayal of smoking in films \u2013 global issues that can be at least mitigated by international cooperation. \u201cWe have all the news that is fit to print,\u201d quipped one veteran official \u2013 recognition that alleviating, let alone solving, the world\u2019s worst humanitarian crisis is a mission from hell.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"element element-rich-link element--thumbnail element-rich-link--upgraded\" data-component=\"rich-link\" data-link-name=\"rich-link-2 | 2\">\n<div class=\"rich-link tone-news--item \"><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p>De Mistura, the third UN envoy appointed to handle the Syrian war since it erupted nearly five years ago, plans to hold talks for six months, exploring prospects for ceasefires, action against Isis and improved humanitarian access. The longer-term goal is setting up a transitional government to draft a new constitution and hold elections within 18 months. But the central question of Assad\u2019s future is still not on the table.<\/p>\n<p>When <a class=\" u-underline\" href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2013\/may\/29\/syria-crisis-geneva-talks-last-chance\" data-link-name=\"in body link\" data-component=\"in-body-link\">Syrian peace talks were held in Geneva two years ago<\/a>, nothing at all was achieved. Expectations this time round could hardly be lower \u2013 certainly over reaching a negotiated political settlement. Yet signs are that the goals may be becoming less ambitious. \u201cThe least we can hope for,\u201d said one senior diplomat, \u201cis a significant reduction in violence and guarantees to protect civilian areas.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u03a0\u03b7\u03b3\u03ae: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2016\/jan\/29\/confusion-renewed-syrian-peace-talks-geneva-bashar-al-assad\">www.theguardian.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Efforts to launch talks aimed at ending the war in Syria have got off to&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1113],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22687","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22687","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22687"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22687\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22688,"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22687\/revisions\/22688"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22687"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22687"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kedisa.gr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22687"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}