Syria opposition reacts coolly to UN-backed peace plan

He also restated Tehran’s position on Assad’s fate, saying it was the Syrian leader’s choice if he wanted to run in future presidential elections.

He said Kerry’s efforts in NY offered “an opportunity, not to turn back the clock- it’s going to be hard to completely overcome the devastation that’s happened in Syria already- but to find a political transition that maintains the Syrian state, that recognises a bunch of stakeholders inside of Syria and hopefully to initiate a ceasefire”.

“We know that Daesh can never be allowed to gain control in Syria so we have a global imperative here to deal with a terrorist entity but also to end the civil war”, he said, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

The United States, its European allies, Saudi Arabia and other Arab nations have insisted that Assad must go, though Kerry said “everyone” has by now realised that demanding Assad’s departure up front in the process was “in fact, prolonging the war”. It formalizes a target of six months for establishing a transitional government, followed by elections within 18 months.

“There must be safeguards regarding the exit of Bashar al-Assad”, declared Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.

The plan was negotiated in Vienna and would convene talks between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and opposition groups.

More than 250,000 people have died since the Assad government’s crackdown on political protests turned into a full-blown civil war in 2011.

Obama spoke as US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held a meeting of foreign ministers in NY to discuss a political settlement to the almost five year-old war.

Meanwhile Jordan’s foreign minister has presented a draft list of “terrorist” groups that the ISSG nations will agree to exclude from the talks.

Mr Kerry said there were still sharp disagreements between the ISSG parties – some of which sponsor armed factions on the ground – as to which groups should be banned.

Syria’s main opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition, warned that hopes for a ceasefire by Jan 1 were unrealistic and demanded that Russian Federation halt its air strikes as part of that truce.

The talks between Syria’s government and opposition should begin in early January, the draft said.

Fellow coalition member Samir Nashar said bombing by the regime and Russian Federation must stop for there to be a sustainable cease-fire.

Karim Bitar, head of research at the Institute for worldwide and Strategic Affairs, described the UN-backed plan as “a very significant first step” but added that “many ambiguities and ulterior motives remain”.

“I was packing my luggage”.

Aside from hosts Russian Federation and the United States, the ISSG represents Britain, the UAE, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Lebanon, Jordan, China, Egypt, Germany, France, Iran, Iraq and Italy.