"The liberation of Aleppo creates exceptionally favorable conditions to continue, after a long pause, intra-Syrian negotiations under UN auspices. We again call on the UN special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura to urgently convene the next round of talks in Geneva. Without any preconditions. Damascus is ready for these negotiations," Borodavkin said.
He also expressed regrets that the Higher Negotiation Committee (HNC) opposition group was not ready for the dialogue.
"The Riyadh group [HNC] continues to put forward an ultimatum regarding Syrian President Bashar Assad's immediate resignation. We believe that this position should not be considered as something that blocks a genuine dialogue between the moderate political opposition and the Syrian authorities," the envoy stressed.
However, a failure by the UN to convene the next round of intra-Syrian talks in near future could lead to the start of direct talks between then country's moderate opposition and the Syrian government, Borodavkin added.
"If the next round is not convened in the near future, whether it is with the participation of the Riyadh group [HNC], or without, then the moderate patriotic Syrian opposition and the Syrian authorities can start negotiations even without the United Nations," Borodavkin said.
He added that many Syrian opposition groups striving to reach a political solution to the conflict share this sentiment.
