Syrian opposition sees bleak prospects for US-Russia talks

BEIRUT- Leaders of Syria@@@s political and armed opposition said on Wednesday they were sceptical of a plan by the United States and Russia to bring together the warring sides in their country@@@s two-year conflict for a peace conference.
A day after the announcement by Secretary of State John Kerry and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow of plans for a peace conference, opposition figures said they were still reluctant to talk with President Bashar Assad@@@s government.
They worry that a peace conference would be cover for a diplomatic initiative to press them to accept Assad or his inner circle as leaders in a future transitional government.
"Before making any decisions we need to know what Assad@@@s role would be. That point has been left vague, we believe intentionally so, in order to try to drag the opposition into talks before a decision on that is made," said Samir Nashar, a member of the opposition@@@s umbrella National Coalition body.
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