Syrian opposition groups discuss peace push

SAUDI Arabia is hosting a three-day meeting in Riyadh to try to unite the Syrian opposition before potential talks with the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

There have been attempts to do this before, but this time international peace efforts are gaining momentum.

There is a need for the opposition to speak in one voice and present a common vision for Syria’s future.

The alliances in this conflict are a complicated maze: There is no clear way through.

There is a spanner in the works already after the decision by Saudi Arabia not to invite the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the largest Kurdish group, and its armed wing, the YPG. Its allies, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), have not been invited either.

Instead, they will be holding a separate meeting in Syria’s northeastern province of Hasakah.

The Saudi meeting comes amid international efforts to restart peace negotiations with the Syrian government and there is a need to create a delegation to represent the opposition.