Russia Calls For Elections in Syria, Ready To Work With Free Syrian Army

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov showed off Moscow’s increasing sway over Damascus on Sunday as he made it clear that the Kremlin wanted beleaguered Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to prepare for parliamentary and presidential elections, Reuters reports.

Lavrov also reportedly spoke to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry over the phone this weekend in an attempt to begin organizing talks between the opposition in Syria and Assad’s government.

While Russian diplomats maintain that Assad must be part of any political transition in Syria, their counterparts in Washington have said they could grant him a short changeover period, but that he would need to quickly step down from power.

Rebel groups in Syria reacted to Russia’s calls for new elections in Syria with great skepticism. “Russia hit the factions of the Free Army and now it wants to cooperate with us, while sticking by Assad? We do not understand anything from Russia,” said Ahmed al-Seoud, commander of the Free Syrian Army-affiliated 13th Division rebel group.

Assad Willing to Hold Elections, But ‘Terrorists’ Must Go First

Bashar al-Assad has said he is ready to hold early elections for parliament and the presidency – a position for which he will certainly run – and is also willing to discuss constitutional changes, but only after he and his allies defeat the “terrorist” groups in Syria, Russian diplomats announced on Sunday after meeting with Assad.

While Russian and Syrian officials met, according to the Associated Press, another group of Russian officials met with counterparts from the United States, Saudi Arabia and Turkey to discuss political pathways that would bring an end to the ongoing violence in Syria, now well into its fifth year.

The two groups are at odds with each other over how to bring an end to the conflict. While most Syrian opposition groups – including those with Western backing – see Assad’s removal as an essential part of any political transition, and will most likely not take part in any election staged by his government, the Syrian president and his Russian and Iranian backers are keen on Assad staying in power.

To make matters even more complicated, Assad’s government views all armed rebel groups as “terrorists.”

Syrian Rebels Unwilling to Cooperate with Russia Unless Bombing Stops

A string of opposition groups in southern Syria connected to the Free Syrian Army said Monday that Russian planes would need to stop bombing them before they could begin talks surrounding cooperation with Moscow in Syria, Reuters reports.

In response to comments made by Russia’s foreign minister over the weekend regarding the readiness of the Russian air force to help out “patriotic” Syrian opposition, Issam al-Rayyess, spokesman for the Free Syrian Army’s Southern Front, said the group had not officially declined Moscow’s offer.

“We didn’t turn own the offer. We just said if the Russians are serious in their offer they should stop immediately targeting our bases and targeting the civil areas,” al-Rayyes told the BBC. “We don’t need the help now, they should stop attacking our bases and then we can talk about future cooperation.”

Recommended Reads

• The Atlantic: Saving Syria’s ‘Lost Generation’
• The Associated Press: Islamic State Earning up to $50 Million a Month in Oil Sales Despite US Attempt to Rein it in
• The New York Times: Jimmy Carter: A Five-Nation Plan to End the Syrian Crisis
• The New York Review of Books: In the Syrian Deadlands
• Los Angeles Times: ‘Poetry is a Witness’ to Suffering Wrought by Syria’s Civil War

Top image: Refugees stand at a camp in Latakia, Syria, on Friday, Oct. 23, 2015. Latakia, the heartland of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s Alawite minority, offers the Russian military a safe environment and a warm welcome from people blaring car horns and chanting “thanks” in Russian. (AP Photo/Vladimir Isachenkov)