Some Riyadh-Talks Parties 'Cannot Take Part' in Syrian Crisis Negotiations

Moscow believes that it is impossible for some of the Syrian opposition forces that recently gathered for a conference in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh to take part in the Syria crisis negotiations, Russia's envoy to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, said.

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) — Last week, Syrian opposition groups convened for a two-day conference in Riyadh. At the close of the conference on Thursday, a 32-member council was formed, which is set to choose 15 delegates that would represent the Syrian opposition at the upcoming talks with Damascus.

"[Saudis] have invited many oppositionists, and we believe that some of them can't participate in the negotiations," Churkin told RIA Novosti.

Aside from Daesh (ISIL/the Islamic State) and the Nusra Front, Moscow considers several other groups active in Syria to be terrorist organizations, he added.

"We believe that they should be also considered terrorist," Churkin said.

In a joint statement published following the international talks on Syria in Vienna on November 14, representatives of 20 regional powers agreed to compile, by January 1, 2016, a list of organizations fighting in Syria that should be designated as terrorist groups.

Syria has been torn apart by a civil war since 2011, as government forces fight opposition factions and extremist groups operating in the country.