Russian Federation slams Syria opposition meet in Riyadh

It also said rebel fighters had been under-represented at the talks and their voices largely ignored.

Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with the army loyal to Assad fighting several opposition factions and militant groups, including the al-Nusra Front and Islamic State, outlawed in Russian Federation and many other countries. Already, more than 100 leaders have formed an array of bloc groups and have created a high commission to oversee negotiations with the Assad government, independent of the Saudi government.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to return to marathon global climate negotiations after staying at the conference site into the wee hours of the morning.

There were reports on Thursday night that the group had changed its mind and was going to be a part of the talks.

An A310 MRT aerial refuelling jet left separately from Cologne-Wahn base for the Incirlik airbase in southern Turkey.

National Coalition member Monzer Akbik told Al-Jazeera the meeting was comprised of 25 representatives in total from the opposition’s two main factions and a variety of smaller opposition groups. It also committed to preserving state institutions.

To prepare for talks with the regime a joint body representing various factions will be established, followed by the selection of a negotiating team to join UN-mediated talks and implemention of a future ceasefire.

Not all groups present at the talks, however, were content with the terms of the proposed framework.

“There were many false accusations against us, but most of our people have been in prison, ” said Khalaf al-Dawood, a member of the National Coordination Body, an opposition group that has remained based in Syria.

Some delegates have nonetheless expressed hope the end result of the talks will be positive, with questions on Assad’s future potentially put off until later.

He said they want his government to “negotiate with terrorists and this is a matter that I believe no one will accept”.

The opposition communique will be of some comfort to the Western nations who supported calls for Assad to be overthrown early in the uprising but have become dismayed by the revolution’s takeover by Islamist and jihadist groups. On Thursday, Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said some groups linked to the Islamic State militant group were involved in the Riyadh meeting.

Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister says that Syrian President Bashar Assad has two choices: “either to leave through negotiations” or be forcibly removed from power.

Jubeir’s comments came as leaders from the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council held their annual summit in Riyadh.

Those talks, expected to take place next month, are part of a road map outlined by world and regional powers in Vienna to move closer to a political solution of a conflict now in its fifth year.