Spokesman for the Syrian Opposition Coalition, Louay Safi, confirmed that the Coalition might agree to negotiate at the Geneva 2 Conference on Syriawith acceptable figures from the political wing of Bashar al-Assad’s regime, such as Vice-President Farouq al-Shara.
In exclusive statements to Anatolia News Agency, Safi said that the delegation of the Syrian regime is composed of two groups. One group is the military side, and “it is a group no one can sit with, because the hands of its members have been tainted with the blood of the Syrian people, but the second group contains figures able to negotiate, such as Farouq al-Shara.”
The spokesman stressed that the negotiation would be to hand over power to a transitional government, and that Assad will have no future in this government, pointing out that this is one of the basic principles of the Coalition.
Safi criticized the rumors about the Coalition's determination to go to Geneva 2 even if Bashar al-Assad stays in power, describing them as "rumors that aim to undermine the Syrian revolution and destabilize [relations] between the coalition and the military groups working on the ground."
The spokesman for the Coalition saidthat the announcement of fifty armed battalions belonging to the opposition forces in southern Syria united under the name of "The Revolutionary Command Council for the Southern District” came in response to these rumors.
Meanwhile,Syrian Deputy Prime Minister Qadri Jamil said that the Geneva 2 Conference might be held on 23 and 24 November.At a news conference in Moscow, Jamil said that Syria is getting very close to Geneva 2, adding that he discussed the possible dates of the conference with the Russian Foreign Ministry. Jamil stressed that "Geneva 2 remains the only way to settle the Syrian conflict."
Translated and edited by The Syrian Observer
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