Syrian regime will wait max. 24 hours for opposition in Geneva: FMMarch 12, 2016 - 17:28 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The Syrian government delegation to shaky peace talks in Geneva will wait no more than 24 hours for the opposition delegation to arrive, the country's foreign minister said on Saturday, March 12, according to AFP. "Our delegation will leave for Geneva tomorrow.... We will wait 24 hours and if no one is there, then we will return," Walid Muallem told a news conference in Damascus. He insisted that the opposition delegation take part in talks at the United Nations headquarters in the Swiss city, deriding them for "spending the last round in hotels." "Otherwise, we will not waste our time," Muallem said. The last round of talks in Geneva between the government and the main opposition body, the High Negotiations Committee, collapsed in February. At the time, the HNC delegation arrived in Switzerland roughly 36 hours after the government, but waited another two days to head to the UN headquarters. Both the government and the HNC have agreed to participate in a fresh round of indirect talks in Geneva starting on Monday. 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 | Putin congratulates Pashinyan’s birthday Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his birthday on June 1. Opposition motorcade en route to Gyumri for large rally A motorcade of protesters headed by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan is heading to the city of Gyumri. Ruling MPs, Foreign Minister talk Armenia-Azerbaijan processes MOs from the ruling Civil Contract party met with the Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in the Armenian parliament. Russia: Armenia’s frozen membership weakens CSTO position in Caucasus A Russian envoy said any step that could alienate the CSTO member states from each other is “deeply wrong”. |