The Syrian Coalition and the Free Syrian Army’s General Staff said that Russia’s announcement that it was convening a conference in the city of Sochi represents a departure from the UN-sponsored Geneva negotiations and international resolutions on political transition in Syria.
In a press release issued on Friday, the Syrian Coalition stressed that calling this conference represents an attempt to depart from all relevant UN Security Council resolutions and violates the text spirit of the Geneva Communiqué of 2012.
The Coalition underscored that all relevant UN Security Council resolutions and the Geneva Communiqué of 2012 clearly stated that a political solution should serve as the cornerstone of the formation of a Transitional Governing Body (TGB) with full executive powers and whose primary task is to create an appropriate and neutral environment for the success of the transitional phase. It added that TGB’s tasks also include convening a national dialogue conference, the holding of a referendum on the drafting of a constitution, and the holding of free and fair elections.
The Syrian Coalition and the FSA’s General Staff confirmed they would not participate in the Sochi Conference as they reiterated their support for the political transition process in Geneva aimed at achieving the aspirations of the Syrian people for freedom, dignity, and justice. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department)
