Fighting terrorism, key to resolve Syria crisis: Miqdad

Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal al-Miqdad says the priority to reach a political solution to the deadly crisis in the Arab country is to stand against terrorism.

Miqdad said the Syrian government delegation in the Swiss city of Geneva starts the talks with the discussion on how to stop “terrorism and killing and bloodshed” in Syria before moving to other issues.

He made the comments at a Monday news conference in Geneva, ahead of the second round of negotiations with foreign-backed opposition in Switzerland.

Terrorist attacks in Syria could spread to the whole region if not countered, Miqdad warned, stressing that Western states must stop funding Takfiri terrorists in his country.

The Syrian official further said that Damascus would talk about the issue of power transition whenever appropriate.

Miqdad also underscored the Syrian government’s seriousness in pursuing peace and ending the conflict.

The Syrian government delegation, led by Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, arrived in Geneva on Sunday to participate in a second round of negotiations known as the Geneva 2 Conference.

The first round of the talks aimed at containing the deadly violence ended inconclusively on January 31 amid sharp differences between representatives from the Syrian government and the so-called Syrian National Coalition (SNC).

The Syrian government blamed the failure of the talks on the foreign-backed opposition coalition, which insists on the resignation of President Bashar al-Assad and the formation of a transitional government.

Damascus strongly rejects the demand, saying the Syrian people can only decide the issue.

Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since 2011.

Some sources say more than 130,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the violence fueled by Western-backed militants.