The impasse on the crucial issue of forming a transitional Syrian government came as peace talks in Geneva entered a second week, with United Nations mediator Staffan de Mistura underscoring the need to make gains before negotiations pause Thursday.
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US Secretary of State John Kerry will raise the issues of the ongoing Syrian cessation of hostilities and the Intra-Syrian peace talks during his visit to Moscow this week, State Department spokesman John Kirby said on Monday.
Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s loyalists made it clear that they have no intention of bargaining away their president’s position while Assad’s opponents were equally deliberate in saying that there can be no solution that does not include Assad’s removal.
“He said it was premature at the moment to talk about it. Premature means imminent as far as we (U.N.) is concerned”, de Mistura told reporters.
The diplomat also reported that the issue of terrorism, a recurring matter in talks seeking to broker a political end to a five-year conflict which has resulted in over 250,000 deaths, had been addressed.
Regardless of the regime’s actions, Kodmani said the HNC was moving forward with negotiations by responding to 30 questions de Mistura had posed regarding the opposition’s plan for political transition.
“We’re aware that the regime has asked for a two-week delay for the next round of talks. This is something already excluded”, he said.
“The delay in the entry into force of the rules agreed upon for responding to violations of the ceasefire in Syria is unacceptable”, lieutenant general Sergei Rudskoy said in a statement, accusing Washington of showing “no readiness” to discuss the agreement with Russian Federation.
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At least 26 pro-government fighters were killed battling Islamic State near Palmyra on Monday as Damascus stepped up a bid to recapture the ancient city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
