Syria’s Assad says he won’t negotiate with “terrorists” as US wants

It also stated that participants at the talks backed a “democratic mechanism through a pluralistic regime that represents all sectors of the Syrian people”.

Others are more wary, noting uncertainty over the attitude of some Islamist and Kurdish groups, not to mention the intentions of the United States and Russian Federation.

“There are some questions and obviously a couple of, in our judgement, kinks to be worked out and I’m confident they’re going to be worked out”, said John Kerry, US Secretary of State.

Assad insisted a majority of Syrians backed his rule and that he would not step down, as Syrian rebel groups and many Western powers demand.

The summit ended in confusion on Thursday amid reports that Ahrar al-Sham, one of the biggest Islamist rebel groups fighting on the ground, had walked out over the inclusion of what they called “pro-regime” figures in the talks.

According to opposition sources, the committee will be made up of 30 members, a third of them representing armed factions.

“It is essential for the political and armed opposition, which resists the attacks” by Assad’s regime and the Islamic State group to “unite its efforts to form a political interlocutor needed for Syria”, he added.

The walkout pointed to how deeply contentious the issue of negotiating with the regime is, especially for the armed groups that have been fighting for four years to topple Assad.

“The situation on the military level is much better than before, but again, the price is very high”, he said, citing foreign aid for rebels, which he referred to as “a lifeline for those terrorists” as being the cause. Internal opposition groups disagree, as do Assad’s key backers, Tehran and Moscow. Despite its signing on, the brief withdrawal nonetheless reveals deep divisions within the opposition that could impact negotiations with the regime and global powers.

Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad has dismissed possible negotiation with the Syrian opposition until rebel groups lay down their arms.

Kurdish fighters were also left out.

Participants attend a conference held by the Democratic Forces of Syria in Derek, Syria on December 8, 2015.

Assad said his military position had improved in the fight against insurgent groups in the almost five-year war, but acknowledged that it was taking its toll. On Thursday, Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said some groups linked to the Islamic State militant group were involved in the Riyadh meeting.

Speaking at a news conference earlier Thursday, Al-Jubeir said Assad has two choices – either step down through negotiations or be forcibly removed from power.

Those must be addressed if a planned high-level diplomatic conference is to be held as scheduled at the United Nations later this month.