An official close to Syrian President Bashar Assad said Thursday that the government is still undecided over whether to take part in a second round of peace talks tentatively scheduled for next week.
Assad's political and media adviser Bouthaina Shaaban also told Syrian state television in an interview late Wednesday that the delegation who attended the Geneva II negotations last month are still in the process of evaluating the talks and "briefing the leadership", the Associated Press reported.
A fraught and dramatic week of negotiations in Geneva between representatives of Assad's regime and the main Western-backed Syrian opposition coalition ended without any significant progress being made.
The United Nations have proposed that a second round of peace talks place between both sides next Monday. The opposition have already agreed to attend the talks, according to AP.
The Geneva II talks hit a stumbling block when the discussion of Assad stepping down from power came up, with the opposition demanding that he plays no role in a transitional government and the regime rejecting this idea.
