Choppy start, controversial positions, mark the first Russian-based talks on Syria

Tabnak – Amid controversies over the Syrian opposition’s fragmented view toward the political process, the Syrian National Dialogue formally held in Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. However, it’s still not clear whether Moscow’s initiative could mean a significant breakthrough in resolving the Syrian crisis. 

Talks between the Syrian government and the opposition in the Russian resort city of Sochi entered their second and final day in the hope of paving the way for a peaceful settlement of the conflict gripping the Arab state.

The Syrian Congress of National Dialog started out on Monday and continued on Tuesday. The talks are moderated by Russia and Iran, on the side of Damascus, and Turkey, which aligns itself with several armed opposition groups. 

In a report earlier on Tuesday, British newspaper The Telegraph talked of a “shambolic start” for the congress, as “dozens of opposition delegates refused to leave the airport in Sochi and others backed out at the last minute.” According to the paper, more than 70 rebel delegates refused to leave the airport until all logos and emblems representing the government were removed.

AFP reported that the opening of the event was delayed by at least two hours due to the opposition’s intransigence, prompting the Russian and Turkish foreign ministers to speak twice on the phone to try to resolve the issue.

Gulf News notes in a separate report that until this week, the Saudi-backed group titled HNC was still undecided on whether to attend or not, but a final decision to boycott was reached on Saturday. As for the Kurdish groups, the Kurdish National Council decided not to attend too, after it broke away from the mainstream opposition, in objection to their support for Turkey’s military operation in Afrin.

On the other hand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France withheld their representatives from attending the event, citing “the Syrian government’s refusal to properly engage,” Reuters reported.

However, in an interview with TASS new agency, head of the Russian Institute of Oriental Studies Vitaly Naumkin said that the congress in Sochi will galvanize the talks on Syria in Geneva. 

"The Geneva talks will receive a boost after the Sochi [congress] and will be promoted. I am confident that the decision on whether [the congress] should be held on a regular basis and whether it will continue or not should be taken during consultations with our partners," the expert said.

"The arrival of UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura in Sochi means that the Sochi platform is operating within international law," Naumkin noted. "This adds legitimacy to the congress; that said, the forum does not replace the Geneva format."

Press TV cites Randa Kassis, a representative of the opposition platform as saying “Unfortunately there are some countries that are against Sochi, against the political solution.” She added that those who refused to partake in the Sochi talks “don’t really want peace in Syria, they want just to keep the war in Syria.”

Moscow, which has invited around 1,600 delegates to the talks, had given assurances that all strata of the Syrian society will be represented. However, given the challenging start, it seems that there’s still a long way to go in order to reach a political solution for the Syrian conflict.