Russia accuses Syrian opposition of plotting to foil talks

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday indirectly charged the Syrian opposition of plotting to torpedo the Geneva conciliation talks aimed at resolving the three-year Syrian crisis. Speaking at a news conference with his visiting German counterpart, Lavrov said these bids were designed to place obstacles on the negotiating path to prompt the Syrian Government "close the door for negotiations." He criticized Ahmad Al-Jarba, the head of the mainstream opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition, for abstaining from participation in the talks in Geneva and accused Western states of trying to politicize the humanitarian issue in Syria by threatening to use force against the Damascus government. Lavrov refrained from setting a time-table for the negotiating process in Geneva and called for broader participation of the opposition. The veteran Russian foreign minister also heaped criticism upon the opposition delegation taking part in the negotiations for trying to restrict targets of the discussions to establishing an interim ruling authority, arguing that greater attention should be given to the fight against terrorism, as he said.