"Especially the constant bombing by Russia of opposition areas creates a significant problem for the opposition," Erdoğan told members of the press in İstanbul after attending Friday prayers. "Their participation without a cease-fire in place would be a betrayal of those fighting," he said.
Turkey, a main backer of the moderate Syrian opposition along with Saudi Arabia, also pressed for not including Syrian Kurdish group the Democratic Union Party (PYD) at the talks, and threatened to boycott the talks otherwise.
UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura had decided against sending an invitation to the Kurdish group, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said on Wednesday.
Fabius said de Mistura told him the PYD would not attend the talks. "The PYD group was causing the most problems, and Mr. de Mistura told me he had not sent them an invitation letter," Laurent Fabius told France Culture radio.
Speaking to Voice of America, PYD Co-chair Saleh Muslim said Turkey's role in the UN's decision to exclude the PYD was negative. But he claimed the US, Russia, de Mistura and the UN have been the paramount actors who made the final decision on PYD, not Turkey.
He ruled out any prospect of a solution in Syria without the PYD. He said the party will continue its struggle on the ground.
- UN launches Syria peace talks despite opposition boycott
The first Syria peace talks in two years were a "complete failure" before they even started on Friday, a Western diplomat said, after the UN announced it would press ahead with them despite an opposition boycott.
Opponents of President Bashar al-Assad said they were far more concerned with fending off a Russian-backed military onslaught, with civilians reported to be fleeing as the Syrian army and allied militia tried to capture a suburb of Damascus and finish off the rebels defending it...
[todayszaman.com by Reuters]
29/1/16
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