Syrian opposition in Turkey to prepare for Geneva talks

A Turkish diplomatic source said that representatives of the Syrian opposition had arrived yesterday in Ankara to discuss the upcoming negotiations in Geneva, Turkish state-run Anadolu reported.

Anadolu said that the representatives of both the armed and the political opposition would attend a meeting at the Turkish foreign ministry. They are also expected to have discussed the outcomes of last month’s Astana talks, which focused on extending the ceasefire that came into effect in Syria on 30 December.

The ceasefire was brokered by Russia who, alongside Iran, supports the Syrian regime of President Bashar Al-Assad, and Turkey, which backs the opposition.

Those travelling to Ankara included the chief of the Higher Negotiations Committee Riad Hijab, Syrian National Coalition President Anas Al-Abdah, representatives of armed opposition groups who attended the Astana talks last month and representatives of the Kurdish National Council in Syria as well as the Ankara-based Council of Syrian Turkmen.

The source, who spoke to Anadolu on condition of anonymity, added that some religious scholars as well as representatives of the Druze and Alawite minorities would also be present.

On 6 February, a “technical meeting” about Syria will be held in Kazakhstan’s capital Astana again with the attendance of representatives of Turkey, Russia, Iran and the UN. The next round of negotiations will be held between the Assad regime and opposition in Geneva on 20 February.