Syrian opposition prepares for Geneva talks

The US secretary of state has met the president of an exiled Syrian opposition group as reports suggested it was preparing to represent opposition interests at talks in Geneva.

John Kerry on Thursday met Khaled Khoja of the Syrian National Coalition in Washington to discuss the ongoing crisis in Syria and ways to boost US assistance to the opposition.

Kerry said at a later news conference that the Syrian government had "lost all sense of any kind of responsibility to its own people", while Khoja called on the US to help establish civilian safe havens in areas controlled by opposition forces.

An SNC source said the pair discussed safe havens, preparations for a planned "Geneva III" conference involving world powers, regime figures and members of the opposition, and recent opposition successes on the battlefield.

Khoja said circumstances were right for the UN Security Council to take decisive action to end the suffering of Syrians.

SNC prepares for Geneva III

According to sources, an expanded senior SNC delegation was preparing to travel to Geneva on May 4. The coalition had originally planned to send three people - Hisham Marwah, the vice president, and members Haitham al-Maleh and Samir Najjar.

The SNC also reiterated its firm commitment to a political solution and the resumption of negotiations from where they were halted to form a fully-fledged transitional governing body.

The statement added that "the victories of the rebels impose a change to the balance of power on the ground and a new perspective by the international community on the current political reality.

"They require a real shift in the level of support and coordination provided to the forces of the Syrian revolution.
     
Parts of this report have been translated from our Arabic edition.