After the preliminary talks that took place Thursday, the Geneva talks on Syria are expected to begin on Friday with substantive talks between the participating delegations.

After the preliminary talks that took place Thursday, the Geneva talks on Syria are expected to begin on Friday with substantive talks between the participating delegations.

In this context, the spokesman of the Supreme Commission for Negotiations Salem al Mosalat expressed the desire of the delegation of Syrian opposition to engage in direct negotiations leading to a political solution to the crisis in Syria. He revealed receiving pledges by UN envoy Staffan de Mistura that the current round will directly address the political transition process, calling on him to fulfill those commitments.

Ramzi Ezzidine Ramzi, assistant UN envoy to Syria, said on Thursday that the discussions were objective. “We talked about all the issues that need clarification before we officially start, and in that sense I think it was a positive meeting, so let’s see what happens,” he said.

Al Arabiya’s envoy to Geneva said on Thursday that the official opening of the Geneva talks on Syria would be on Friday instead of Thursday as planned, due to the presence of UN envoy Staffan de Mistura in Ankara.

She added that all delegations arrived in the capital, Geneva, and that De Mistura’s assistant will meet with the delegation of the High Commission for Negotiations on Thursday afternoon, while she pointed out that Jihad Makdisi, one of the representatives of the so-called the Cairo platform, is the most prominent absentee from this round.