Moscow and Beijing stress broad representation of Syrian opposition, except for terrorists, in Geneva talks

Moscow, SANA – Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov asserted that Russia and China share similar stance towards the crisis in Syria.

This assertion came during a joint press conference with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Moscow on Friday.

Lavrov stated that all spectra of the Syrian national opposition must be represented in the Syrian-Syrian dialogue in Geneva, except for the terrorists who are not included in the cessation of hostilities agreement.

He called on all parties to comply with the UN resolutions related to settling the crisis in Syria including the cessation of hostilities agreement, expressing hope the Syrian talks in Geneva will contribute to achieving this goal.

He insisted that the intra-Syrian dialogue principles approved by the UN Security Council must be complied with as all the forces of the opposition need to be represented, including those who participated in the meetings in Moscow, Cairo and Riyadh and the meetings of the opposition inside Syria.

Lavrov warned of the attempts seeking to exclude some groups and imposing others under the name of so-called “The High Negotiations Commission”.

Lavrov pointed out that attempts to consider any of these groups as the main group during dialogue with the Syrian government do not fit with the demands of the UN Security Council resolution and run counter to the standards of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG).

Lavrov said that Moscow has insisted on the participation of the Syrian Kurds in the Syrian-Syrian dialogue in Geneva since the start, noting that barring them from participation is risky and betrays a sign of the international community’s weakness.

The Russian diplomat added that Turkey is the only ISSG country that prevents the participation of the Kurds in the Syrian-Syrian dialogue while other parties in the group support it, pointing out that Turkey’s recent activities, not only in Syria but also in its dialogue with the EU, show that it is intent on continuing its provocations.

Lavrov continued to say that those who insist on excluding the Syrian Kurds from the dialogue bear responsibility for the outbreak of very disturbing prospects, adding that it is unacceptable to allow such risks to emerge because of the whims of only one party in the ISSG.

He said he is confidence that the UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura can take concrete decisions in this regard.

For his part, Wang said Beijing realizes the importance of Moscow’s role to reach a political solution for the crisis in Syria.

He affirmed that the fight against terrorism and the political process are two parallel tracks, since this would help create the appropriate conditions for the intra–Syrian dialogue, renewing Lavrov’s stress on the broadest representation of the opposition forces that agree on fighting terrorism.

Reem/H.Said

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