© REUTERS/ Fabrice Coffrini/Pool
On October 31, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs posted a list of 33 organizations invited to participate in the Syrian Congress on National Dialogue scheduled on November 18 in the Russian city of Sochi. The congress initiative was originally announced following the recent round of the peace talks on Syria in the Kazakh capital of Astana which took place on October 30-31.
On November 1, official from the Syrian opposition rejected this initiative and insisted any talks be held within the UN-backed Geneva format, which has allowed to achieve almost nothing since its launch.
Mohammad Alloush, a member of the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee and a senior member of the Jaish al-Islam militant group, told Reuters that the HNC would “issue a statement with other parties setting out the general position rejecting this conference.” Turkey-based Syrian National Coalition also denied its participation. After this, the congress announcement was taken down from the Russian ministry’s website.
It’s clear that the Russia Foreign Ministry was not able to release the list of 33 groups that would particiate in the announced congress without pre-consideration with the representatives of these groups. Most likely, the so-called “opposition” changed their vision of the situation under pressure of their Western backers. If Russia is able to establish a successful negotiation ground in Sochi, this will be another victory of Moscow’s diplomacy over the conflict. Some powers cannot allow this.
The issue of the upcoming talks and their participants remains open.
Here’s the original list, with each entry followed by the respective organization’s headquarters (source):
- Popular Front for Change and Liberation, Cairo
- National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change, Damascus
- People’s Party, Damascus
- People’s Will Party, Damascus
- National Youth for Justice and Development, Damascus
- Solidarity Party, Damascus
- National Congress Party for secular Syria, Damascus
- Alternative for Syria, Damascus
- High Negotiations Committee, Riyadh
- Kamh movement, Paris, Geneva
- Southern Front of SFA, Geneva
- Syrian National Council, Istanbul
- National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, Istanbul
- Democratic Union Party, Qamishli
- Kurdistan Democratic Party of Syria, Kobani
- Syriac Union Party, Qamishli
- Kurdish National Council, Qamishli
- Movement (Together) for a Free and Democratic Syria, Geneva, Madrid
- Building the Syrian State, Geneva
- Syrian Democratic People’s Party, Damascus
- Syria Homeland Party, Damascus
- National Conference, Damascus
- Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party — Syrian Regional Branch, Damascus
- Social Democratic Unionists, Damascus
- Path of Peaceful Change, Damascus
- Syrian National Youth Party, Damascus
- The Elders
- Syrian National Democratic Union
- Syrian Social Nationalist Party, Damascus
- Assyrian Democratic Organization Mtakasta
- Democratic Arab Socialist Union, Damascus
- Arab Socialist Union, Damascus
- Socialist Unionists, Damascus
PAID BY THE USA TO REJECT CONFERENCE IN SOCHI AS IF LOOSERS COULD HAVE A VOICE ANYWAY….
Perhaps there’s a solution: Count any group who rejects political talks and resorts to armed opposition as a terror group and deal with them as such. How long do they want to continue like that? Perhaps when ISIS is no more, they’ll form a coalition with Syrian PKK and create another armed opposition, re-branded and all, under the protection of their uncle, Sam.
The US is all for democracy and dialogue if it can corrupt the process and control the result to serve its own interests. Kind of like democracy in a cage. The ‘people’s will’ can choose to go anywhere it wants inside the cage, so it’s kind of like freedom, right? No free-range democracy allowed. That’s dangerous!
Yeah … It’s all smoke and mirrors. And those who are not paying attention will likely fall for the Western-Values® and Democracy® narrative. Besides, even US elections are tightly controlled and rigged if necessary (the last one in favor of Clinton without a doubt).
So, they don’t want democracy. So, kill them.
You realize ‘bribery’ is the main tool of democratic parties ?
Let them throw their teddies in the corner! When all the noise and dust finally settles they are going to have to come up with some sort of lasting settlement that is based on common sense and a sound grasp of reality. This is the worst sort of irresponsible gesture politics that will just totally discredit them.
This ‘democratic stuntman’, nothing than terrorist backed by CIA, Gulf states. Their generous financiers know for sure Russian and Syria victory upon their ‘democratic’ thugs, decided on dialogue scheme, so this crook only need ‘b*tt spanking’ for them to crawling back to negotiation table.
Excellent! I don’t see one jihadi (AKA Obama “moderate rebel”) faction on this list.
Alloush can burn in hell with the rest of the Saudi-backed stench.
The ” Syrian opposition rejected this initiative ( Sochi ) and insisted any talks be held within the UN backed Geneva format ” . Reason being is the US can control the Geneva “accords” , they control the list of “delegates” allowed to speak ( themselves US , UK , France etc ) therefore controlling the conclusions reached . Geneva will be used to facilitate their agenda the fracturing of Syria into smaller “controllable ” states . The jihadists have no wish for peace , that would put them out of a job .
Bribery is legal in America, so YOU should NOT expect a different outcome in Your country.