Syrian rebels arrive in Astana for talks with government

At the top of the agenda is an effort to consolidate a ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey last month. The scope of the talks' aims reflects the constrained position of the opposition, which last year was pushing for a road map for a political transition in Syria that would exclude president Bashar Al Assad

Spokesman for the Syrian opposition Yahya Al Aridi speaks to the media ahead of peace talks in Astana on January 22, 2017. Sergei Grits/AP Photo

ASTANA // Syrian rebel delegates gathered in the Kazakh capital on Sunday ahead of talks with government representatives scheduled to begin on Monday — the first such negotiations between the two sides in a year.

Syrian UN ambassador Bashar Ja’afari, who is heading the government delegation, said on Sunday that the main points on the agenda included strengthening ceasefire lines and reaching common ground on fighting terrorism, the state-owned Sana news agency reported.

He said Damascus regarded the peace talks as only being between Syrian parties and that Turkey would not participate in dialogue.

The talks in Astana are sponsored by Russia, Iran and Turkey, and are the latest attempt to forge a political settlement to a war that has by most estimates killed more than 400,000 people and displaced more than half the country’s population.

The UN’s Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura, is participating in the talks, which are to be followed by more political talks in February in Geneva. The new US administration is not directly involved because of the “immediate demands of the transition”, the state department said on Saturday, but Washington will be represented by US ambassador to Kazakhstan George Krol.

The opposition delegation, which arrived in Astana on Sunday, is made up of about a dozen rebel figures led by Mohammad Alloush of the powerful Army of Islam rebel group. The Syrian government is sending military delegates alongside Mr Ja’afari.

At the top of the agenda is an effort to consolidate a ceasefire brokered by Russia and Turkey last month. The truce reached on December 30, which excludes extremist groups such as ISIL and Jabhat Fatah Al Sham, Al Qaeda’s former affiliate in Syria, has reduced overall violence in the country but fighting continues on multiple fronts.

“If this can be achieved, this can help the political process,” said Yahya Al Aridi, a spokesman for the opposition delegation and a member of the High Negotiations Committee, a political group which led the opposition negotiating team to Geneva last year.

The scope of the aims reflects the constrained position of the opposition, which last year was pushing for a road map for a political transition in Syria that would exclude president Bashar Al Assad.

Mr Al Aridi said there was no plan to discuss Mr Al Assad’s position before addressing what he said were ongoing government violations of the December 30 ceasefire.

“I don’t think there’s a context for that now. Nobody is ready for this,” Mr Al Aridi said. “We need a commitment to that ceasefire.”

The opposition has also promised to highlight the government’s harsh siege tactics which have cut off hundreds of thousands of Syrians from food and medical access. In Damascus suburbs such as Madaya, Zabadani, and parts of the central city of Homs and its surrounding areas, civilians have been under siege by government forces since at least 2015.

* Associated Press, Reuters