Doomed talks but to attend them still important

Doomed talks but to attend them still important
The Syrian opposition delegation looks more solid despite the current losses on the ground due to the Russian bombardment.

In Geneva, 17 Syrian opposition figures arrived yesterday. Hijab is well-respected Syrian politician. He was appointed by Assad as prime minister in 2012 but he defected three months later and fled to Jordan. He engaged in political activities without getting part of its disputes which made him an acceptable name as a head of the negotiating team after Riyadh conference. 

By attending Geneva talks, the opposition manages to pass the first step of a long path that is estimated to last for 6 months of negotiations whose main subjects are known while its details are still vague. 

Early estimates were pessimistic about the ability of the opposition forces to unite but here they are now, united and agreed on choosing their leader. 

The opposition could also pass the unreasonable preconditions since the policy of the opposition’s delegation is based on not giving the opportunity to Assad regime and its allies to be alone with the international community represented by the U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura. 

The opposition’s delegation also knows that the 6-month period is enough time to prove good will or bad one and other political plots, so they can therefore refuse any unreasonable project. 

Can the opposition handle successfully the main urgent topics such as imposing a ceasefire? The answer is probably, “Yes”.  The opposition will be able to do that if it was given access and control over the places it dominates but it won’t be responsible for the activities of extreme organizations in other areas that are outside its control. However, we can ask the same question here to other sides. Can the negotiators impose the same conditions on Assad regime, the Iranians and the Russians? Can they stop the military actions? 

Between starting the ceasefire and opening humanitarian corridors as well as limiting clashing areas, releasing detains and giving free access to relief aids a long time will pass before negotiating the future of political transition in Syria which is the mainly cause of the conflict in Syria and the goal of Geneva talks. 

It is clear that there is nearly nobody who is optimistic about the ability of Geneva talks to settle the dispute because it is a political conference in nature that has revealed goals which are different from those known in public. 

The U.S wants to get involved in political activities in order not to be accused of being indifferent towards the most serious crisis in the world today while the Europeans want to stop the influx of refugees flowing to Europe. On the other side the Russians believe that they are able to impose a political solution that oblige the opposition to surrender to Assad giving them only some marginal positions in Assad’s cabinet. But, since Geneva talks are no more than that why should the Syrian opposition attend Geneva talks?

First, the Syrian Opposition will not lose anything by taking part in Geneva talks. Second, it will not give a chance to Assad regime to claim the full right to represent all Syrians. However, Geneva I was held two years ago. At that time Assad regime promised its loyalists to get rid of all its opponents but though it has been helped by both the Iranians and Russians, it can’t make any success till now. So, neither Geneva nor the U.N. can impose a solution which the majority of Syrians refuse.  

Abdulrahaman al-Rashid in Asharq Al-Awast   

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