Syrian Opposition to Boycott Geneva Talks If Truce Breaches Continue

If the ceasefire violations in Syria will continue to take place, the Syrian opposition’s High Negotiations Committee (HNC) will boycott the Geneva negotiations, Naghm Ghadri, the deputy head of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, told Sputnik on Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The HNC, which was created in Saudi Arabia in December and includes representatives of some groups considered to be terrorist organizations by Syria and Russia, is one of the opposition delegations participating in the UN-brokered talks on the Syrian settlement launched late January and later put on hold.

"The violations of the truce are obvious and well documented, there is evidence. We are waiting for the reaction from the [UN truce supervision] commission. If the situation continues to develop in this way, we will change our stance on the truce and even on the negotiations," Ghadri said.

Last week, Russia and the United States reached an agreement on a ceasefire in Syria. The ceasefire took effect on Saturday. The cessation of hostilities does not apply to groups designated by the United Nations to be terrorist organizations, such as Islamic State and the Nusra Front, outlawed in a number of countries worldwide including Russia.

On March 7, the UN-brokered intra-Syrian reconciliation negotiations are set to restart in Geneva to work out a permanent truce.