Rebel groups bowed to pressure from Turkey yesterday and agreed to attend talks with the Assad regime in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, next week.
They dropped past conditions and said that they would concentrate on extending the ceasefire rather than an over-arching peace deal. This means that for the first time negotiations can begin without rebels insisting on the departure of President Assad as a first step. “The negotiations will focus on the ceasefire,” a spokesman for one rebel group said, asking not to be identified.
Russia, which is co-sponsoring the talks with Turkey, hopes to use them to cement its position as regional power-broker. All sides say that a ceasefire, perhaps leading to a broader deal for Syria, would enable the countries and factions to focus on getting rid of jihadist groups such as the Fateh al-Sham Front, formerly Nusra Front, and Isis.
The United States, which is bombing Isis in Syria and the Fateh al-Sham Front leadership in Idlib province, also confirmed that it had been invited to attend.
There has been talk in Turkish circles of the rebel factions uniting into a “Syria National Army” that could co-operate with parts of the regime.
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The negotiations, due on Monday, will involve rebel fighting groups leading the talks for the opposition for the first time. The talks are opposed by the Fateh al-Sham Front. Ahrar al-Sham, one of the biggest hardline Islamist groups in the opposition, is split over whether to attend.