RUSSIA TO HOST TALKS ON SYRIA CONFLICT IN APRIL

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, gesturing at center left, welcomes participants at consultations between representatives of the Syrian government and opposition figures in the Russian capital, Moscow, on January 28, 2015. © AP

Moscow, 14 Jumadil Awwal 1436/5 March 2015 (MINA) – Russia says it plans to host fresh negotiations between the government of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad and opposition groups in April.

“Representatives from a larger section of the Syrian opposition,” are expected to attend the planned talks, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Alexander Lukashevich, said on Thursday, as quoted by Press TV and Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA).

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told RIA Novosti news agency that members of the so-called Syrian National Coalition (SNC), who did not take part in the first round of discussions in January, were “considering coming to Moscow” for the talks in April, .

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He further noted that Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy to Syria, would also join the new round of negotiations.

Russia hosted the first round of talks on Syria, which ended without any concrete results. Thirty members of opposition groups and the Syrian government representatives attended the discussions.

The opposition and its Western supporters insist that Assad must step down and a transitional government be formed in Syria, but Damascus has rejected such a demand, arguing that the foreign-backed opposition does not represent the Syrian opposition.

Syria has been grappling with a deadly crisis since March 2011. The violence, fueled by Takfiri groups, has so far claimed the lives of over 210,000 people. (T/P007/R04)

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Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)