Government and opposition clash over Assad’s presidency before Syria peace talks

Syria’s government has warned that peace talks will fail if any parties tries to discuss the presidency in a transition government, just as the lead opposition negotiator said a political transition could not even start unless Bashar al-Assad was no longer president.

The statements reflected the huge challenges facing diplomats as they prepare for talks to resume in Geneva on Monday, trying to build on a ceasefire deal that has reduced violence sharply since February 27.

Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem confirmed his government’s participation but said the UN-led talks would fail if the opposition had “delusions that they will take power in Geneva that they failed to take in battle”.

The comments of the foreign minister have put the “nails in the coffin” of the peace process before it even starts, the opposition said.

A delegation from the Syrian government is heading to Geneva on Sunday, but will not stay for more than 24 hours if the opposition does not show up.

“We will not talk to anyone who talks about the position of the presidency. Bashar [al-Assad] is a red line; the property of the Syrian people,” Muallem said during the televised news conference in Damascus. “I advise them that if this is [the opposition’s] thinking, they shouldn’t come to the talks. They must abandon these delusions.”

A spokesperson for the opposition reacted angrily to Muallem’s comments which he said were “halting the talks before they start”.

Monzer Makhous of the opposition said they “will only accept the formation of a transitional governing body” within six months.

The Syrian government also adopted a confrontational stance with the UN. Muallem criticised comments made by Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy for Syria, who said presidential elections will be held within 18 months.

“Neither he nor anyone else has the right to talk about presidential elections. This is an exclusive right of the Syrian people … The government delegation will reject any attempt to put this on the agenda,” he said.

“We will not talk to anyone who talks about the position of the presidency ... I advise them that if this is their thinking, they shouldn't come to the talks,” Moualem told a televised news conference.

Within hours, opposition negotiator Mohamad Alloush, already in Geneva, had described Moualem's comments as worthless.

"We consider that the transitional period starts with the fall of Bashar al-Assad or his death," he told reporters. "There's no possibility to start this period with the presence of this regime or the head of this regime in the power."

The talks will coincide with next week's fifth anniversary of a war that has killed more than 250,000 people, created the world's worst refugee crisis, and allowed for the expansion of the Islamic State militant group.

They are part of the first diplomatic push since the Russian air force intervened in September to support Assad, tilting the war his way and helping Damascus reclaim significant areas in the west.

The ceasefire agreement, brokered by the United States and Russia, has been more widely respected than many expected, though fighting has continued on some important fronts, including near the Turkish border.