The Syrian government is willing to discuss at peace talks an opposition proposal to evict foreign fighters from the country, a deputy minister told Reuters on Wednesday, signalling a rare sign of accord between the warring foes.
The Syrian opposition called earlier for a transitional governing body to be set up that would oversee a total ceasefire under UN monitoring and be empowered to drive out foreign fighters deployed on both sides of the war.
When asked if the government would negotiate on the proposal's point regarding foreign fighters, Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said: "Of course ... We are not closed to discussing any issue. But we have to discuss them one by one.
The Syrian opposition called for a transitional governing body to be set up that would oversee a total ceasefire under UN monitoring and be empowered to drive out foreign fighters deployed on both sides of the civil war.
The classified paper, obtained by Reuters, was presented to international mediator Lakhdar Brahimi and a Syrian government delegation at a joint session held at peace talks in Geneva.
"The Transitional Governing Body will prepare and oversee a total ceasefire by taking immediate measures to stop military violence, protect civilians and stabilize the country in the presence of UN observers," the five-page document said.
In turn, the Syrian government delegation said that negotiations must focus first on fighting terrorism before any other issue was discussed, state media reported.
Syria TV said the delegation also rejected parallel-track talks that would allow a simultaneous discussion of the opposition's priority of a transitional government, calling the proposal a "fruitless" idea.
Meanwhile, diplomats said that International mediator Lakhdar Brahimi met Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov, who was holding separate talks later with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem in Geneva, diplomats said.
An opposition source said the National Coalition met with the Russian ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva on Tuesday evening as involvement by Moscow, President Bashar Assad's ally, stepped up after two days of talks ended with no progress.
Brahimi, the United Nations envoy, began a joint session with the delegations of the Syrian government and opposition at mid-day on Wednesday, a U.N. statement said.
But the two sides remain far apart in their approach to talks sponsored by their respective backers Russia and the United States.
Brahimi is now due to meet US Under Secretary Wendy Sherman and Gatilov on Thursday; a day earlier than planned in a sign that the envoy is hoping the two powers can bring pressure to bear on their respective allies.
Brahimi said on Tuesday he aimed to discuss the key issues of violence and establishment of a Transitional Governing Body in parallel. However Damascus says it wants to address the issue of "terrorism" first and political transition later.
Separately, activists said Assad's forces and members from Lebanon's Hezbollah stepped up attacks on Syria's strategic border town of Yabroud on Wednesday in apparent preparation for a new offensive to flush out rebels.
REUTERS
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