Syria peace talks see “positive” step

Syrian peace talks in Switzerland took a "positive" turn on Wednesday though the two sides still have not agreed on the focus of the talks.

GENEVA // Syria’s warring sides said on Wednesday peace talks in Geneva had taken a positive turn, but there were still deep divisions on what the focus of the negotiations should be.

Delegations from president Bashar Al Assad’s regime and the opposition National Coalition both said a fifth day of talks had got off to a “positive” start.

They said the discussion finally focused on the Geneva I communique — the never-implemented road map to peace put out by global powers during talks here in 2012 — but appeared to disagree about what aspects of the text they had discussed.

“Today we had a positive step forward because for the first time now we are talking about the transitional governing body, to end dictatorship and end the fighting and the misery in Syria,” opposition delegation spokesman Louay Safi said.

The opposition maintains that creating the transitional government called for in the Geneva I communique must be the first step towards a political solution, and insists implementing the document requires Assad to leave power.

The regime denies the text requires Mr Al Assad to step down and says his role is not up for debate at this conference.

Regime delegation member Buthaina Shaaban confirmed that talks on the Geneva communique had begun on Wednesday and had been “positive”, but said this was “because they spoke about terrorism.”

She stressed that the first item in the Geneva text is related to ending the violence in Syria, something the regime largely equates to rooting out the “terrorism” it claims the opposition and its foreign backers are supporting.

“We want to discuss Geneva I item by item, starting from the first item... They want to jump to the item that speaks about the transitional government,” Ms Shaaban said, accusing the opposition of only being interested in grabbing power.

Despite their disagreement about the topic of discussion, the positive tone marked a shift after two days of total deadlock.

The two sides, which were set for separate meetings on Wednesday afternoon, have been brought together in Geneva in the biggest diplomatic push yet to end a civil war that has left more than 130,000 dead and forced millions from their homes.

Expectations are low for a breakthrough, especially after the talks hit an impasse on Monday when UN mediator Lakhdar Brahimi failed to get the two sides to agree on even the basic principles of political talks.

Then talks fell apart on Tuesday after the regime delegation urged participants to adopt a statement condemning Washington for supporting “terrorists” in Syria by backing rebel groups.

Mr Brahimi, who amid the stalemate cancelled an afternoon meeting, stressed though to reporters on Tuesday evening that neither side was ready to quit the talks, which are expected to last until Friday.

“Nobody is walking out, nobody is running away,” Mr Brahimi said on Tuesday. “We have not achieved any breakthrough, but we are still at it, and this is good enough as far as I’m concerned.”

No progress was meanwhile apparent on Wednesday towards fulfilling the only tangible promise of the talks so far: Mr Brahimi’s announcement on Sunday the regime had agreed to allow women and children safe passage from besieged rebel-held areas of Homs.

The Old City of Homs has been under siege since June 2012 after rebels there rose against the regime, with an estimated 500 families living with near-daily shelling and the barest of supplies.

UN bodies and the International Committee of the Red Cross have said they are on standby with aid but are waiting for approval to move in.

“The convoy is ready and still waiting to enter. The authorisation has not been given yet,” Mr Brahimi said on Tuesday. “We haven’t given up on that.”

Ms Shaaban said the regime had not denied access to the areas, reiterating the government’s line that “it is those (opposition) armed gangs who refuse to allow civilians to go out because they take them as human shields.”

It took months of pressure from Washington, which backs the opposition, and Moscow, Mr Al Assad’s key international ally and arms supplier, to bring the two sides together.

Their efforts also secured a landmark deal last year to remove and destroy Syria’s chemical arsenal.

But in yet another reminder of the urgency of bringing Syria’s bloody civil war to an end, US intelligence chief James Clapper said on Wednesday that Damascus may now be capable of producing biological weapons.

Syria’s opposition said meanwhile it planned to hold talks with Russian officials in Moscow, but had still to confirm dates.

Also on Wednesday, Turkey’s prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who supports the Syrian rebels, met with Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and president Hasan Rouhani, who support the regime.

“Our relations with Turkey have entered a new phase and we hope this trend continues. Besides serving the interests of the two countries, we hope our dialogue (with Turkey) serve regional interests as well,” said Marzieh Afkham, Iran’s foreign ministry spokeswoman.

* Agence France-Presse