GENEVA (Reuters) – Syria’s civil war foes held their first face-to-face meeting yesterday, launching talks aimed at ending nearly three years of conflict which has killed 130,000 people and destabilised the wider Middle East.
Government and opposition delegates faced each other across a negotiating table at the United Nations headquarters for a total of three hours in the presence of mediator Lakhdar Brahimi, who described the meetings as “a good beginning.”
While political differences which Brahimi says must form the core of their talks appear insurmountable for now, the two sides focused yesterday on a possible humanitarian deal aimed at building confidence in the negotiating process.
Brahimi said he hoped that authorities in Syria would approve access today for an aid convoy to reach the rebel-held centre of Homs – allowing it to be delivered tomorrow.
“We haven’t achieved much, but we are continuing,” he told a news conference after the talk concluded for the day.
Anxious to avoid any possible confrontations, organisers ensured the two parties entered and left the negotiation room for the morning and afternoon sessions through separate doors.
Brahimi said they faced each other during the meeting but addressed their remarks through him. “This is what happens in civilised discussions, you talk to the president or the speaker or the chairman,” he said.
