Syrian President Bashar al-Assad declared on Friday, December 11 that he would not negotiate with armed groups, appearing to scupper peace talks that Russia and the United States hope to bring about next month, Reuters reports.
In an interview with the Spanish news agency EFE, Assad said he would not hold political talks with any armed groups, and accused Washington and its ally Saudi Arabia of wanting "terrorist groups" to join negotiations.
He said Syria had contact with armed groups for one reason only: "to reach a situation where they give up their armaments and either join the government or go back to their normal life … This is the only way to deal with the militants in Syria.
"There’s no point in meeting in New York or anywhere else without defining terrorist groups," he said. "For us, in Syria, everyone who holds a machinegun is a terrorist."
Foreign ministers of countries opposed to Assad are due to meet in Paris on Monday to prepare for talks with Russia and Middle Eastern countries in New York on Thursday with a specific focus on trying to form the opposition delegation for the peace talks.
The rebel groups, in turn, issued a statement at the end of their two-day conference in Riyadh saying Assad should leave power at the start of a transitional period, and calling for an all-inclusive, democratic civic state.
