Syria’s key opposition National Coalition said Sunday it would boycott talks proposed by U.N. peace envoy Staffan de Mistura over concerns about his plan and Russia’s air strikes in the country.
The National Coalition has “decided not to participate in the consultative working groups and considers adherence to the Geneva communique and (U.N.) Security Council resolutions and an end to Russian aggression to be the basis for the resumption of the negotiation process,” it said in a statement.
The Geneva communique is a document agreed at a peace conference in 2012 that drew up baselines for a Syria peace deal including the formation of a transitional governing body with executive powers.
The opposition says President Bashar al-Assad cannot stay on during any transition period, but the regime says his departure is not on the table.