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Russia-US Compromise on Syrian Peace Talks Delegations, Jihadist Terror Groups Invited to the Geneva Negotiations
By Stephen Lendman
Global Research, January 25, 2016

Url of this article:
https://www.globalresearch.ca/russia-us-compromise-on-syrian-peace-talks-delegations-jihadist-terror-groups-invited-to-the-geneva-negotiations/5503355

Endless war largely affecting Syrian civilians rages, ongoing for nearly five years, launched by Obama for regime change, wanting the Syrian Arab Republic transformed into another US vassal state.

Washington’s policy remains firm. Earlier peace talks achieved nothing. Whatever comes out of Geneva negotiations, US support for ISIS and other terrorist groups assures continued violence and chaos.

Expect Russia’s best conflict resolution efforts to fail again. Reports indicate Sergey Lavrov and John Kerry agreed on inviting two separate opposition groups to Geneva, including Saudi-backed terrorist organizations – notably Jaish al-Islam (Army of Islam), operating like ISIS.

It’s an extremist salafist umbrella group, representing thousands of terrorist fighters, operating in the eastern Ghouta area of Damascus – responsible for the 2013 chemical weapons attack, killing scores, injuring many others, Assad still wrongfully blamed for its high crime.

In December, Syrian airstrikes killed its leader, Zahran Alloush, an extremist wanting all Syrian Shiites and Alawites eliminated – genocide by any standard. Expect no change in the group’s hardline views in Geneva.

In return for letting it and other US-led Western/Saudi-backed extremist groups participate in Geneva talks, reports indicate Washington agreed on inviting a separate Syrian opposition delegation.

On Saturday from Riyadh, meeting with his Saudi and other rogue Gulf States’ counterparts, John Kerry said “(w)e are confident that with good initiative in the next day or so, those (Syrian peace) talks can get going.”

UN/Arab League envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura is expected to brief reporters in Geneva on Monday, providing details on upcoming talks, according to his spokeswoman Jessy Chahine.

Some issues may remain unresolved. Russia’s Foreign Ministry hasn’t yet commented on what opposition groups will attend Geneva talks, saying only the following on Saturday:

The heads of the foreign policy authorities continued discussing the Syrian topic, and confirmed support for the efforts of the UN secretary general’s envoy for the Syrian crisis Staffan de Mistura to organise next week in Geneva, the talks featuring representatives of the Syrian government and of the opposition with the purpose to achieve political settlement in that country.

They paid special attention…to form(ing a) truly representat(ive) delegation of the opposition and to have the agenda comply with requirements of the UN Security Council’s resolution 2254, including fighting the Islamic State and other terrorist groups, as well as respect for the right of Syrians to determine themselves the future of their country.

They have expressed the common view that in the interests of effective outer supervision of the inter-Syrian political process, it would be reasonable to continue using the format of the International Syria Support Group led by Russia, the US and UN.

We’ll learn more during Mistura’s Monday press conference. Nothing in prospect holds hope for peace in Syria any time soon.

Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at [email protected].

His new book as editor and contributor is titled “Flashpoint in Ukraine: US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III.”

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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