Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al Moualem has thrown hurdles at the UN-led peace talks scheduled to begin on Monday by stating that talks will fail if any party tries to discuss the presidency in a transition government, calling the incumbent president, Bashar Al Assad, a ‘red line’. The foreign minister also heaped criticism on UN envoy Staffan de Mistura for presenting an agenda for the talks and for his comment that presidential elections would take place in 18 months. Immediately after Al Moualem made the statement at a press conference yesterday, the opposition retaliated by saying Damascus was trying to stop the talks before they had started.
The verbal exchanges speak of the huge challenges that lie ahead. Al-Moualem’s statement is a huge disappointment and shows the arrogance of the Syrian regime which wants the talks to be held on its terms, and this can only guarantee the failure of the talks. Its arrogance stems from the support it is receiving from Russia, which has reshaped the war by reclaiming significant areas in the west.
Hopes were high that the planned talks would make some headway, even if limited, as they come during a ceasefire in Syria which still holds despite sporadic violations. The ceasefire was brokered by the US and Russia, and its success, though not complete, has prompted the US to try the formula in Yemen where a civil is going on. But the Syrian regime is stiffening its position and is even criticising the UN envoy, which means the talks are doomed to fail. The Syrian opposition, the US and several Arab countries have made it clear that they will not settle for anything less than the ouster of Assad.
Al Moualem’s statement shows that the talks have reached a stalemate even before they started, and finding a way forward is extremely tough. “I advise them that if this is (the opposition’s) thinking, they shouldn’t come to the talks. They must abandon these delusions,” he said. A delegation from the Syrian government is heading to Geneva on Sunday, but will not stay for more than 24 hours if the opposition does not show up.
The talks will coincide with next week’s fifth anniversary of a war that has killed more than 250,000 people, displaced millions and created the world’s worst refugee crisis which is destablising Europe.
If tomorrow’s talks collapse, it will deal a huge blow to peace efforts and the prospects of another attempt to bring both sides to the negotiating table look remote and will be riddled with as many complications as we witness now. The last round of indirect talks collapsed on February 3 over a Russian-backed government offensive in Aleppo.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al Moualem has thrown hurdles at the UN-led peace talks scheduled to begin on Monday by stating that talks will fail if any party tries to discuss the presidency in a transition government, calling the incumbent president, Bashar Al Assad, a ‘red line’. The foreign minister also heaped criticism on UN envoy Staffan de Mistura for presenting an agenda for the talks and for his comment that presidential elections would take place in 18 months. Immediately after Al Moualem made the statement at a press conference yesterday, the opposition retaliated by saying Damascus was trying to stop the talks before they had started.
The verbal exchanges speak of the huge challenges that lie ahead. Al-Moualem’s statement is a huge disappointment and shows the arrogance of the Syrian regime which wants the talks to be held on its terms, and this can only guarantee the failure of the talks. Its arrogance stems from the support it is receiving from Russia, which has reshaped the war by reclaiming significant areas in the west.
Hopes were high that the planned talks would make some headway, even if limited, as they come during a ceasefire in Syria which still holds despite sporadic violations. The ceasefire was brokered by the US and Russia, and its success, though not complete, has prompted the US to try the formula in Yemen where a civil is going on. But the Syrian regime is stiffening its position and is even criticising the UN envoy, which means the talks are doomed to fail. The Syrian opposition, the US and several Arab countries have made it clear that they will not settle for anything less than the ouster of Assad.
Al Moualem’s statement shows that the talks have reached a stalemate even before they started, and finding a way forward is extremely tough. “I advise them that if this is (the opposition’s) thinking, they shouldn’t come to the talks. They must abandon these delusions,” he said. A delegation from the Syrian government is heading to Geneva on Sunday, but will not stay for more than 24 hours if the opposition does not show up.
The talks will coincide with next week’s fifth anniversary of a war that has killed more than 250,000 people, displaced millions and created the world’s worst refugee crisis which is destablising Europe.
If tomorrow’s talks collapse, it will deal a huge blow to peace efforts and the prospects of another attempt to bring both sides to the negotiating table look remote and will be riddled with as many complications as we witness now. The last round of indirect talks collapsed on February 3 over a Russian-backed government offensive in Aleppo.
