After two-and-a-half years of a brutal war that has claimed more than
100,000 lives and displaced nine million people, the Syrian Government
and the Opposition have agreed to hold their first face-to-face
negotiations
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon described the conference – scheduled to
take place on January 22 – as “a mission of hope”, however, many
experts remain pessimistic that the talks will even take place.
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“The concern for the Opposition is that either they dissolve in
disagreement or they are outmanoeuvred at the table by a Syrian regime
that holds more cards at this point,” said Mona Yacoubian, a senior
Middle East adviser at the Washington-based Stimson Centre.
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