Syrian FM Refuses to Deal With US-Backed Opposition Group
Walid Moallem, Syria’s minister of foreign affairs and expatriates, says he will not deal with the National Coalition of Syrian Opposition and Revolutionary Forces, possibly complicating plans for Geneva II in November.
NEW YORK — Syrian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Walid Moallem told Al-Monitor that his government will not deal with the Syrian National Coalition (SNC) headed by Ahmad al-Jarba as the sole representative of Syrian oppositions forces, because the SNC has “no representation within Syria,” and it squandered its credibility by supporting a US military strike on Syria.
UN Security Council Resolution 2118, passed unanimously on Sept. 27, implements a program for the elimination of Syria’s chemical weapons and endorses the Geneva process for a political solution in Syria’s civil war.
Moallem, who also serves as deputy prime minister, said Syria is prepared to engage “unconditionally” in Geneva II and negotiate with an opposition delegation more representative of internal Syrian opposition forces, but not one led by the SNC.
He observed that Resolution 2118 calls for the opposition to be “fully representative of the Syrian people” and that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, “The opposition should be represented in a single delegation. They should present their coherent and united voices of the Syrians inside and outside.”
