Kerry, Putin to meet on Syria this week
‘KINKS’ IN EFFORT TO UNIFY OPPOSITION TO BE DISCUSSED
Secretary of State John Kerry will go to Moscow on Tuesday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Syria amid concerns about what Kerry termed “kinks” in an effort to get rebels and opposition groups to negotiate with the Damascus government.
Kerry met with Putin once before this year, in the Black Sea resort of Sochi in May.
Tomorrow, the French government is hosting foreign ministers from countries involved in Syria in one way or another. Later in the week, concerned nations hope to hold another meeting in New York to lay the groundwork for possible talks early next year between the government and its opponents.
More than 100 political and armed opposition groups met in Riyadh last week and agreed to a set of principles for negotiations that, at the core, would end with the departure of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad. The Syrian leader, however, still has solid support from Russia and Iran, and it is far from clear how an Al Assad exit could ultimately be finessed.
A large gap remains between those who say Al Assad should stay and all military efforts should be directed against Daesh and those who insist that Al Assad should leave power, preferably right away.
In a sign of infighting among Al Assad’s opponents, the largest of the rebel groups, Ahrar Al Sham, briefly walked out of the Riyadh conference to show its discontent with ‘regimefriendly’ opposition.
Washington has expressed unhappiness at Moscow’s military campaign in Syria, which has appeared to target Al Assad’s opponents more than Daesh.
In an interview with Spanish media, Al Assad rejected the idea of negotiations with the opposition groups that met in Riyadh. “They want the Syrian government to negotiate with the terrorists, something I don’t think anyone would accept,” he said.
Armed opponents of his government, Al Assad said, must drop their weapons and stop fighting before any dialogue.
“For us, in Syria, everyone who holds a machine gun is a terrorist,” Al Assad said, adding that it was unclear whether he would send a delegation to the meeting in New York on preparing for future talks.