BONN, Germany (Reuters) — Countries opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, including the United States, backed continued efforts by the United Nations to broker a political solution to the bloody civil war in Syria, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Friday (February 17).
“It is clear that all who met want a political solution … and that this political solution must be achieved in Geneva under the auspices of the United Nations and that there cannot be any parallel negotiations,” Gabriel told reporters after a meeting that included the United States, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, France and Britain.
His French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault said Europe would only take part in Syria’s reconstruction with a credible political transition.
Ayrault added that Russia should pressure the Syrian government to stop considering all opposition as “terrorists”, otherwise the Geneva talks will fail.