However, special envoy Staffan de Mistura admitted discussions over who should take part were continuing.
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One of the conditions before convening the intra-Syrian dialogue in Geneva is a “real ceasefire and not just local”, de Mistura stressed.
The head of the Syrian opposition’s negotiating team said on Tuesday he was not optimistic about upcoming peace talks in Geneva. He declined to elaborate but said any disagreements arising in the Geneva talks would be addressed by another meeting of the 20-odd member International Syria Support Group that is tentatively scheduled for February 11.
He warned the talks would be stormy, with “a lot of posturing, a lot of walk-outs and walk-ins”.
The U.N. special envoy on Syria says he hopes to start peace talks between the government and opposition groups on Friday.
-Russia wants the opposition delegation to include several figures whom the HNC regards as too close to the Assad regime and to Russian Federation, which is carrying out a campaign of airstrikes targeting both ISIS and – mostly, according to the US – other rebel groups.
“We want to make sure that when and if we start, to start at least on the right foot”, said de Mistura, who succeeded Kofi Annan and Lakhdar Brahimi as the top United Nations envoy for Syria. The important thing is that we keep the momentum. We are still supporting the opposition, politically, financially and militarily”, he said, adding later: “We completely empowered them.
Kerry told the Committee’s chief Riad Hijab that they risked “losing friends”, Aliko said.
The U.N. has twice before tried to broker an agreement for Syria, but that attempt at peace ended two years ago with little progress.
All previous diplomatic efforts foundered over the future role of Assad, with the opposition refusing to back off its demand that he leave power and the president refusing to go.
The outcome was up to the Syrian parties, he added: “They have to be serious”.
Cavusoglu said that Turkey considers the forces of the Syrian Kurds to be “terrorists” – but these forces have been supported by Russian Federation, the USA, and other countries, in their fight against Islamic State.
The announcement came as 23 people were reported killed in an attack on a rebel checkpoint in Aleppo.
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Under the UN Security Council’s Resolution 2254, within six months after the Syrian discussions are launched, a transitional government should be set up and the work needs to begin on the new constitution envisaging holding elections in the next 18 months. “We want something that puts an end to the fighting”, he said.
