Syria offered several concessions on Friday ahead of crucial peace talks in Switzerland next week, including a "security plan" for the battered city of Aleppo and a prisoner swap.
Foreign Minister Walid Muallem announced the proposals at talks in Moscow as the divided Syrian opposition was set to decide at a meeting in Istanbul whether to join the so-called Geneva II conference.
But US Secretary of State John Kerry warned the regime that it would fail to divert the peace talks away from the aim of installing a new government, saying "nobody is going to be fooled".
There has been no response yet to Muallem's proposals from the deeply divided exiled opposition in Istanbul, which has yet to even start discussing Friday its attendance at the January 22 talks.
The much-delayed Geneva II conference is aimed at finding a way out of almost three years of brutal conflict that has claimed the lives of 130,000 people and forced millions from their homes.
The opposition National Coalition is under intense pressure from Western and Arab allies to turn up, with media reports suggesting the United States and Britain had threatened to withdraw support if it fails to send a delegation.
Muallem's announcement could mark another diplomatic success for Syria's key ally Russia after the Kremlin managed to convince Damascus last year to renounce its chemical weapons to avert US air strikes.
Muallem said Syria would "make every effort to ensure this event is a success and meets the aspirations of the Syrian people and the direct orders of President Bashar al-Assad".
He said Damascus was prepared to exchange prisoners with rebel forces, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Muallem also offered a "series of humanitarian steps" to lead to the speedy delivery of aid to those in need.
Muallem said he had handed over "a plan concerning measures for ensuring security in Aleppo" after Lavrov and Kerry this week issued a joint call for ceasefires in parts of the battle-scarred country that could begin in the devastated northern city.
More than 35 countries will gather in the Swiss cities of Montreux and Geneva from Wednesday for talks on setting up a transitional government to lead the country, in line with a 2012 deal.
But recent government advances have put the rebels at a disadvantage in any negotiations.
Opposition forces are increasingly riven by rivalries between Al-Qaeda linked jihadists and more mainstream Islamists, with fierce battles that monitors say have killed over 1,000 people in two weeks alone.
But Kerry accused Assad of funding and even ceding territory to extremist groups in order to fuel fears of militant groups.
"They can bluster, they can protest, they can put out distortions, the bottom line is we are going to Geneva to implement Geneva I, and if Assad doesn't do that he will invite greater response," he said.
Kerry had appealed Thursday to the umbrella National Coalition not to boycott the Geneva talks and has sought to ally its fears that the talks would somehow legitimise Assad's regime and leave him in power.
"I believe, as we begin to get to Geneva and begin to get into this process, that it will become clear that there is no political solution whatsoever if Assad is not discussing a transition and if he thinks he's going to be part of that future. It's not going to happen," Kerry said.
But parts of the opposition are wary of being drawn into a process they fear could result in Assad clinging to power.
Friday's National Coalition meeting -- which comes more than a week after it failed to agree a united stance -- is expected to again be fraught.
"It is likely in the end that the coalition will send a delegation to Geneva but at what cost to its future," said one Western diplomat.
A key bloc, the Syrian National Council, has already threatened to pull out of the coalition if it votes in favour of attending Geneva II.
UN refugee chief Antonio Guterres, meanwhile, said it was vital to find a political solution to the conflict and end the suffering of Syrians.
And he pleaded for the world to ease the massive burden on countries which have taken in millions of refugees, after the UN earlier this week launched a massive $6.5 billion appeal for aid.
"What Syrian people need is peace and the possibility to go back to their country and to rebuild their country," he said at a meeting of refugee-hosting countries in Turkey.
Syria offered several concessions on Friday ahead of crucial peace talks in Switzerland next week, including a “security plan” for the battered city of Aleppo and a prisoner swap.
Foreign Minister Walid Muallem announced the proposals at talks in Moscow as the divided Syrian opposition was set to decide at a meeting in Istanbul whether to join the so-called Geneva II conference.
But US Secretary of State John Kerry warned the regime that it would fail to divert the peace talks away from the aim of installing a new government, saying “nobody is going to be fooled”.
There has been no response yet to Muallem’s proposals from the deeply divided exiled opposition in Istanbul, which has yet to even start discussing Friday its attendance at the January 22 talks.
The much-delayed Geneva II conference is aimed at finding a way out of almost three years of brutal conflict that has claimed the lives of 130,000 people and forced millions from their homes.
The opposition National Coalition is under intense pressure from Western and Arab allies to turn up, with media reports suggesting the United States and Britain had threatened to withdraw support if it fails to send a delegation.
Muallem’s announcement could mark another diplomatic success for Syria’s key ally Russia after the Kremlin managed to convince Damascus last year to renounce its chemical weapons to avert US air strikes.
Muallem said Syria would “make every effort to ensure this event is a success and meets the aspirations of the Syrian people and the direct orders of President Bashar al-Assad”.
He said Damascus was prepared to exchange prisoners with rebel forces, while Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Muallem also offered a “series of humanitarian steps” to lead to the speedy delivery of aid to those in need.
Muallem said he had handed over “a plan concerning measures for ensuring security in Aleppo” after Lavrov and Kerry this week issued a joint call for ceasefires in parts of the battle-scarred country that could begin in the devastated northern city.
More than 35 countries will gather in the Swiss cities of Montreux and Geneva from Wednesday for talks on setting up a transitional government to lead the country, in line with a 2012 deal.
But recent government advances have put the rebels at a disadvantage in any negotiations.
Opposition forces are increasingly riven by rivalries between Al-Qaeda linked jihadists and more mainstream Islamists, with fierce battles that monitors say have killed over 1,000 people in two weeks alone.
But Kerry accused Assad of funding and even ceding territory to extremist groups in order to fuel fears of militant groups.
“They can bluster, they can protest, they can put out distortions, the bottom line is we are going to Geneva to implement Geneva I, and if Assad doesn’t do that he will invite greater response,” he said.
Kerry had appealed Thursday to the umbrella National Coalition not to boycott the Geneva talks and has sought to ally its fears that the talks would somehow legitimise Assad’s regime and leave him in power.
“I believe, as we begin to get to Geneva and begin to get into this process, that it will become clear that there is no political solution whatsoever if Assad is not discussing a transition and if he thinks he’s going to be part of that future. It’s not going to happen,” Kerry said.
But parts of the opposition are wary of being drawn into a process they fear could result in Assad clinging to power.
Friday’s National Coalition meeting — which comes more than a week after it failed to agree a united stance — is expected to again be fraught.
“It is likely in the end that the coalition will send a delegation to Geneva but at what cost to its future,” said one Western diplomat.
A key bloc, the Syrian National Council, has already threatened to pull out of the coalition if it votes in favour of attending Geneva II.
UN refugee chief Antonio Guterres, meanwhile, said it was vital to find a political solution to the conflict and end the suffering of Syrians.
And he pleaded for the world to ease the massive burden on countries which have taken in millions of refugees, after the UN earlier this week launched a massive $6.5 billion appeal for aid.
“What Syrian people need is peace and the possibility to go back to their country and to rebuild their country,” he said at a meeting of refugee-hosting countries in Turkey.
