Syria peace talks to kick off in Geneva without key figures
January 29, 2016
ricky lin 13 seconds
This is a chance to end the civil war - it does not come easy.
If the chances for peace is not seize but yet embroil in self-serving interests - everyone suffers ---- i.e. more death, more casualties, more refugees, more destruction, more sufferings, more miseries that will be endless.
ISIS daesh will take the opportunity to grow stronger and stronger to attack overseas countries all over the world.
Those who lost are not only those embroil directely in the conflict - but also include others.
ricky lin 12 seconds
Assume this peace talk did not succeed.
What will be the impact?
(1) Civil war continue where multiple factions continue to fight - more death, more casualties, more civilians death. The dire fates in Syria did not change and miseries continue.
(2) Attention will not be focus on ISIS daesh and ISIS daesh strength will continue to grow. What this mean is that more Countries will succumb to ISIS daesh terrorism plots.
(i) Middle East countries will be the nearest and will succumb to more ISIS daesh attacks.
(ii) Europe, US, Russia, Africa will be the next radar under ISIS daesh attacks and Europe will still continue to be burden by Syria refugees.
(iii) Further afar, Countries will also be threatened by ISIS daesh plot.
ricky lin 13 seconds
If this Syria Peace talk collapse --- everyone will lose - there are no winners.
The only winner is ISIS daesh - who thrive on Syria chaos.
ricky lin 13 seconds
The common Wisdom is obviously lacking in this Peace talk ----- which is so often found in conflict ridden uncompromising factional parties.
Main Syrian opposition team heads to Geneva as peace talks open
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U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura speaks to Syria's Ambassador to the United Nations Bashar al Jaafari (R) during the Syria peace talks in in Geneva, Switzerland, January 29, 2016. REUTERS/Jean-Marc Ferre/United Nations/Handout via Reuters
By Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Stephanie Nebehay
AMMAN/GENEVA (Reuters) - A delegation from Syria's main opposition group flew to Geneva on Saturday to assess whether to join Damascus government officials in United Nations-brokered peace talks, an opposition representative said.
The 17-strong team included the head of the Saudi-backed Higher Negotiation Committee (HNC), which includes political and militant opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the country's five-year civil war.
The HNC has said it wants to discuss humanitarian issues including a stop to Russian and Syrian government bombing before engaging in the peace talks that started on Friday in Geneva.
Russian air strikes on Syria have killed nearly 1,400 civilians since Moscow started its aerial campaign nearly four months ago, a group monitoring the war said on Saturday.
"We are going to Geneva to put to the test the seriousness of the international community in its promises to the Syrian people and to also test the seriousness of the regime in implementing its humanitarian obligations," Riyad Naasan Agha said.
"We want to show the world our seriousness in moving towards negotiations to find a political solution," he told Reuters.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Saturday the Geneva talks must ensure human rights are upheld as participants work towards a political transition in Syria.
"Humanitarian law must be respected and the objective of a political transition actively pursued to enable the talks to succeed," Fabius said in a statement sent to Reuters.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov was quoted by Russian Interfax news agency as saying that no direct talks were expected in Syria, only proxy talks.
Gatilov, whose country has also objected to the opposition's composition saying it included groups that it deemed as terrorist, said there were no preconditions for the Syrian talks and that Moscow welcomed the decision by Syrian opposition coordinator, Riad Hijab, to take part in talks in Geneva.
The U.N. earlier said the aim would be six months of talks, first seeking a ceasefire, later working toward a political settlement to a war that has killed more than 250,000 people, driven more than 10 million from their homes and drawn in global powers
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told German newspaper Welt am Sonntag the negotiations would be test of intentions.
"Only at the negotiating table will it become clear if both sides are prepared to make painful compromises so that the killing stops and Syrians have a chance of a better future in their own country."
The HNC's demands include allowing aid convoys into rebel-held besieged areas where tens of thousands are living in dire conditions, Agha said.
The medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said on Saturday that 16 people had starved to death in the government-besieged town of Madaya since aid convoys arrived this month and blamed the authorities for blocking medical supplies shipments.
“It is totally unacceptable that people continue to die from starvation, and that critical medical cases remain in the town when they should have been evacuated weeks ago,” said Brice de le Vingne, MSF’s director of operations in a statement.
Agha said the opposition delegation, including HNC head Hijab and chief negotiator Asaad al-Zoubi, would not call for a complete cessation of hostilities but would demand an end to "the indiscriminate shelling of markets, hospitals and schools by the regime and its Russian backers".
Russia and Syria deny targeting civilians, saying they take great care to avoid bombing residential areas.
In separate comments before heading to Geneva, Zoubi said they would not engage in any negotiations before these goodwill measures were taken.
"Without concrete steps, Geneva would be futile" he told Reuters.
He said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry gave assurances by phone to the HNC's leadership, saying Washington supported a UN-backed political transition period without Assad - a bone of contention among warring parties.
The HNC have also been under pressure by mainstream armed groups represented within it not to give in to Western pressure perceived as a sellout, with some rebel groups already threatening to pull out of the body.
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