Vienna, Austria will play host to a crucial meeting on Friday on the future of Syria and international efforts to end the bloody 4-year civil war that has left hundreds of thousands dead and has served as a breeding ground for Daesh, or the self-described ISIS.
For the first time, all the main powers with an interest in the four-year-old conflict will convene together to discuss a peaceful end to the conflict, including regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran.
Secretary of State John Kerry and Saudi King Salman meet in Riyadh in October, 2015.
“While expectations remain low of quickly overcoming entrenched differences on Syria, the meeting breaks ground in bringing together Iran and Russia — the main backers of Bashar al-Assad’s regime — with those agitating for his ousting, including the US, Turkey and Saudi Arabia,” writes Alex Barker et. al in the Financial Times (subscription required). “It is also a sign of Iran’s gradual return to the international fold since it agreed a nuclear accord that clears the way for sanctions against it to be largely lifted next year.”
Although Iran is a critical participant in any talks that would determine Syria’s future, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, speaking Oct. 28 with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond in Riyadh, said the Saudi government was persuaded by its international partners to let Iran come – but the Kingdom saw it as a “test” to see if it could play a constructive role.
A meeting last month between Russian and Saudi officials. Russia and Iran’s support of Assad has put the two nations at odds.
“The view of our partners … was that we should test the intentions of the Iranians and the Russians in arriving at a political solution in Syria, which we all prefer,” Al Jubeir said, according to a Reuters report. “If they’re serious we will know, and if they’re not serious we will also know and stop wasting time with them,”
While the United States is keen to see an end to the conflict in Syria with President Bashar Assad out of power, Secretary of State Kerry said that the U.S. wishes to defeat Daesh, and eliminating Syria as a safe haven for the terrorist group is a priority.
“Ultimately, to defeat Daesh [Islamic State, or IS], we have to end the war in Syria…And that is America’s goal,” Secretary of State John Kerry Said, according to a report in Al Monitor by veteran regional reporter Laura Rozen. “While finding a way forward on Syria will not be easy … or automatic, it is the most promising opportunity for a political opening,”
Saudi Arabia said it would “test” to see if Iran was serious in finding an end to the conflict in Syria at upcoming talks in Vienna, Austria.
A White House spokesman, Eric Schultz, told reporters.”The United States is prepared to work with any nation, including Russia and Iran, to resolve the conflict in Syria.”
Writing in the New York Times, Thomas Erdbrink et al. note the invitation of Iran to the table “reflected how rapidly the dynamics of the war have changed.”
“Clearly worried about the military support that Russia and Iran are providing to prop up President Bashar al-Assad, the United States has concluded that the only hope for easing Mr. Assad from power is to find a political solution with his two sponsors.”
