Syrian opposition says ready to attend talks, outlines conditions November 11, 2013 - 09:57 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Syria's main opposition alliance says it will attend planned peace talks, if a number of conditions are met, BBC News reported. The Syrian National Coalition is calling for a guarantee that relief agencies will be given access to besieged areas, and political prisoners will be released. It also says that any conference should result in a political transition. President Bashar al-Assad's government has rejected any preconditions for the conference in Geneva. The UN, U.S. and Russia had been trying to convene the meeting by the end of November. But UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi said last week that the conference would be delayed, although he was still "striving" for a summit by the end of the year. The Syrian National Coalition reached the agreement after two days of talks in Istanbul. A statement released by the office of Monzer Azbik, the chief of staff to the coalition's leader, repeated the group's demand that President Assad step down in any transitional government. It outlined conditions that must be met before the talks, including a guarantee of access for relief agencies. It comes a day after elders from the Damascus suburb of Qudsaya reportedly managed to negotiate a temporary lifting of a government blockade to allow some food supplies into the area. The suburb has been under siege for a month. Attempts to set up a "Geneva II" conference to end the Syrian conflict have been continuing for months amid disputes over who should attend and its agenda. The Syrian government has already agreed to attend peace talks. Related links:   Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot".   Partner news |  Latest news About 173 million drams and more than 30 beneficiary funds. "The Power of One Dram" is 4 years old  In June 2020, the exclusive joint corporate social responsibility initiative of Idram and IDBank "The Power of One Dram" was launched.CSTO budget “to be adjusted due to Yerevan’s non-payment of contributions” The CSTO budget for the current year requires adjustments due to the refusal of Yerevan to pay their share of contributions.Russia sends note of protest to Armenia over envoy’s trip to Ukraine’s Bucha Russia has sent a note of protest to Armenia over the visit of Vladimir Karapetyan and Tigran Ter-Margaryan to Bucha.Armenia: Protesters march to parliament, some spend the night on street The protesters did not disperse despite heavy rain that began at around 2 a.m. local time. |
