News Analysis: Vienna talks reflect real int'l desire to end Syrian crisis politically

The recent agreement in Vienna on the Syrian issue reflects a long-awaited international consensus on finding a political solution to the country's nearly five-year-old conflict, even though hurdles still lie ahead of the implementation of the political steps, experts here say.

POLITICAL PROGRESS

On Saturday, Russia, the United States and powers from Europe and the Middle East agreed in Vienna on a time table of establishing a transition government of Syria, and to hold an election within 18 months. They also agreed that fighting the Islamic State (IS) terror group is a priority in the course of achieving a political settlement in Syria.

However, the fate of President Bashar al-Assad remained unsolved.

The Vienna meeting took place a day after gunmen and suicide bombers went on a rampage through Paris, killing at least 127 people.

The deadly attacks were deemed by Syrian experts as one of the reasons that pushed the international powers to reach a consensus on the need to prioritize fighting terrorism.

"The mechanism of a political solution has become evident, and all of the voices now are directed towards the political solution," said Hasan Abdul-Azim, head of the National Coordination Body (NCB), the major political opposition force inside Syria.

"Everyone needs a political solution and no one can shy away from engaging in this political efforts, neither the government nor the opposition. Anyone who would isolate himself will find himself out of the equation," he added.

Anas Joudeh, another opposition figure, told Xinhua he expects "a heavy diplomatic flurry" in the next phase between the oppositions and regional and international powers for the formation of an opposition delegation capable of holding a dialogue with the government.

THREE NEW POSITIVE THINGS

Hmaidi Abdullah, a political analyst, said there are three new things that have been agreed upon in the fresh round of Vienna talks, the first was ignoring a major controversial issue about the role of al-Assad.

Abdullah said the second "good, and new thing is that the major powers have prioritized countering terrorism without placing conditions ahead of the move."

He said the West's move to issue a UN Security Council resolution to establish a ceasefire in Syria, while at the same time excluding the IS and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front from such a ceasefire means that the war on terror will continue, and will include any other militant group which could be agreed upon later.

The third new thing is that there is a regional and international cover for fighting the terror groups by both the Russian-led coalition, which include Syria, Iran and Iraq on one hand and the U.S.-led coalition. This means a new agreed upon approach by both Russia and the United States, each of them was skeptical about the role of the other in fighting terror groups in Syria.

THREE OBSTACLES AHEAD

Meanwhile, Abdullah outlined three hurdles facing the implementation of the Vienna agreement.

The first impediment is related to the ceasefire, which has excluded IS and Nusra, as both deemed the terrorist groups that should be fought and eliminated.

In some areas such as in the provinces of Raqqa, Deir al-Zour, Hasakah and the eastern countryside of the provinces of Homs and Aleppo, the presence of only IS is evident and there is no problem in continuing to battle the terror group in this region. There are other areas, however, where the Nusra Front is present alongside other militant formations, which have not been labeled as terrorists, Abdullah pointed out.

"So how will this decision (ceasefire with exclusions) be translated on ground? How will they strike Nusra and exclude other militants who are present with Nusra in certain areas? This is a real problem, and the general wording of the Vienna agreement didn't explain this particular detail," he said.

The second snag, Abdullah continued, is forming a unified delegation of the Syrian opposition, which, despite the long-running conflict in Syria, has yet to unify its stances.

"They have yet to unite on one vision, let alone agree on the percentage of representation in the desired unified delegation," Abdullah said.

The third hindrance is about forming a national unity government, because the issue of the representation percentage and sharing quotas between the government and the opposition will surface.

"I think there will be years of negations and I think talking about 18 months for elections to be held is an exaggeration," Abdullah said.

Meanwhile, Abdul-Azim, the head of NCB, said his group is exerting efforts to unify the stances of the opposition and its vision and is working to end the division among the opposition ranks.

AMBIGUOUS SYRIAN STANCE

"Syria's sovereignty not negotiable either with friends or enemies," the Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi said on Sunday, the first official response to the outcome of the Vienna talks.

Speaking to reporters in Damascus, al-Zoubi said the Syrian government has to study the outcome of the Vienna talks before giving a stance.

The Syrian government has always believed in the political solution to end the Syrian crisis, but it should respect the national sovereignty of Syria, particularly the option to decide the nature of Syria's political system and the country's leadership, the minister said.

Still, al-Zoubi stressed that his government is "fully committed" to its agreements with UN special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, about joining the working groups to discuss solutions to the Syrian crisis, which is the first step in the dialogue, meaning that the government is surely open to starting dialogue with the opposition. Endit