BRAHIMI TO MEET SYRIA SIDES FRIDAY: UN

New York, 13 Rabi’ul Akhir 1435/14 Februari 2014 (MINA) – The United Nations says UN-Arab League envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi will meet the two Syrian delegations separately for a further round of talks.

The new round is to take place on Friday morning, the UN said, hours after Brahimi met senior US and Russian officials to reinvigorate the talks process, Reuters reported on Thursday, Press TV by quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

“They have kindly reaffirmed their support for what we are trying to do and promised that they will help both here and in their capitals and elsewhere to unblock the situation for us, because until now we are not making much progress in this process,” Brahimi stated.

Following a meeting with US Under-Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, opposition delegate Badr Jamous said Sherman’s meeting with Brahimi and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov was “not successful.”

“She just told us about the meeting with the Russians and Brahimi and it was not successful,” Jamous told reporters.

Talks between the Syrian government and the foreign-backed opposition in Geneva have reached a deadlock with both sides sticking to their positions.

The Syrian delegation says fighting terrorism should be top priority. But the opposition insists that the formation of a transitional government and resignation of President Bashar al-Assad must come first.

The second round of negotiations known as the Geneva II conference between the Syrian government delegation, led by Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, and foreign-sponsored opposition, opened in the Swiss city on Monday.

The first round of talks last month produced no tangible results, with each side blaming the other for the bloody violence in Syria.Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011. (T/P012/E01)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)