The so-called Congress of the Peoples of Syria will take place in January in Sochi, aiming the continuation of the intra-judicial dialogue. To this end, Russia, Iran and Turkey – the countries that took the role of guarantor of the ceasefire in Syria – are all the parties involved, representatives of the opposition, social and ethnic groups of the Syrian Republic, as well as representatives of the peaceful settlement of disputes between the countries concerned. The goal of the conference of the Syrian conflict sides, as the organizers stressed, was “the final destruction of camps and nesting territories of terrorism” in Syria.
The Syrian Peoples Congress is the successor, not the alternative to the Geneva process, and ensures the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254 on the right of the Syrian people to decide on their own future. Interchurch consultations in Geneva demonstrated the inability of the Syrian government and the opposition to discuss the fate of the country. The talks in Astana also only partially achieved their goal. Therefore, as emphasized in the resolution, it is extremely important that “all parties in Syria should contribute to the viability of the political process and the ceasefire through confidence-building measures” and that “all states have an impact on the Syrian and Syrian governments. The opposition promotes the peace process and promotes measures to strengthen trust and steps towards a cease-fire.” The conference of the Syrian conflict parties in Sochi is a place for the Syrians to negotiate, the representatives of the country present at the congress speak only as observers.
However, Moscow’s efforts to establish constructive dialogue are being questioned. With covert support from Riyadh and Washington, about 40 opposition groups refused to attend the congress, since the goals of the upcoming event remain unclear to them. In addition, Syria is actively informed of false information about the “true” goal of Russian bombing of terrorist positions.
It’s not a secret that the motives of the opposition are to earn enough to continue the war in Syria, so it does not violate relations with radical Islamists, which already undermine the concept of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Syrian republic. Thus, the specter of terrorism over the liberated country reappears to promote destabilization and the new threat of international terrorism.