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US urges Syrian regime to negotiate 'seriously' with opposition after UN talks fail
US urges Syrian regime to negotiate 'seriously' with opposition after UN talks fail
The US has urged supporters of the Syrian regime to press it to "participate fully" in negotiations with the opposition after the UN blamed Damascus for failed talks.
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The Syrian regime's delegation has been blamed for the UN talks failing [Anadolu]
The Syrian regime has been told by the US to negotiate "seriously" with the opposition in peace talks after the UN blamed Assad's delegation for the lack of progress.
The United States on Friday urged supporters of the Syrian regime to press it to "participate fully" in negotiations with the opposition, saying a lack of a political resolution in the war-torn country threatened indefinite instability.
The United States on Friday urged supporters of the Syrian regime to press it to "participate fully" in negotiations with the opposition, saying a lack of a political resolution in the war-torn country threatened indefinite instability.
In a statement, spokeswoman for the State Department Heather Nauert said the US wanted the regime's supporters "to use their leverage to urge the regime to participate fully in tangible negotiations with the opposition in Geneva".
"The United States urges all parties to work seriously toward a political resolution to this conflict or face continued isolation and instability indefinitely in Syria," she said.
The UN envoy for Syria acknowledged on Thursday that the latest round of peace talks for the war-ravaged country had failed, and blamed Damascus for the "golden opportunity missed".
Staffan de Mistura told reporters that "we did not have real negotiations," blaming in particular the government delegation's apparent lack of interest in discussing anything besides the fight against "terrorism".
While the opposition, which was united in one delegation for the first time, had seriously engaged in all subjects on the table, he said "the government engaged sadly only on one subject... terrorism."
His statement came at the end of the eighth round of indirect talks in Geneva between delegations representing Damascus and the opposition in Syria's brutal, nearly seven-year war.
While the opposition, which was united in one delegation for the first time, had seriously engaged in all subjects on the table, he said "the government engaged sadly only on one subject... terrorism."
His statement came at the end of the eighth round of indirect talks in Geneva between delegations representing Damascus and the opposition in Syria's brutal, nearly seven-year war.
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