With a new round of Syrian peace talks scheduled to begin on Friday in Geneva, analysts offered opinions on what the Syrian government and the opposition seek to achieve.
The chief goal of the delegation of the current Syrian government led by Bashar Ja’afari, permanent representative of Syria to the UN, is to address terrorism, according to some analysts.
“I think what the Syrian government prioritizes is to combat all kinds of terrorist groups, those related to al-Qaeda and extremist organizations. Such groups cannot be called the ‘opposition’,” said Sarikis Kassargian, a political analyst.
The Syrian government is also likely to propose practical ways to implement a cease-fire, humanitarian access, negotiate with the opposition on building a National Unity Government, agreement on early election, and other confidence-building measures.
“[The government and the opposition] need to start from building mutual trust, and to achieve a cease-fire and bring an end to the war,” said Hassan Abdel Azim, secretary-general of National Coordinate Body for Democratic Change (NCB), a Syrian bloc consisting of 13 left-wing political parties.
It is also pointed out that multiple camps among the opposition might turn out to undermine the opposition’s position in the talks. There had been reports that the opposition will be represented by two delegations in the Friday talks.
“Two delegations representing the opposition is a weakness in the talks while one delegation from the government is an advantage. This one delegation is rich in experience; it knows how to carry out such talks,” said Kassargian. (CCTV/Reuters)
