The list of invitees was determined at the December 20 trilateral meeting among the Russian Federation, the United States and the United Nations, said in a statement released by the UN.
It was stated that the Conference is the result of an important initiative announced by Russian Federation Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and United States Secretary of State John Kerry on May 7, 2013 in Moscow. "It aims to bring two broadly representative and credible delegations of the Syrian government and opposition to a negotiating table in order to end the conflict and launch a political transition process through the full implementation of the Geneva communiqué of June 30, 2012," said in the statement.
It was stated that the Geneva Conference is an opportunity for ending the violence and ensuring that peace. "The transition foreseen in the Geneva communiqué can be implemented in a way that fully meets the aspirations of the Syrian people. At the core of this effort is the establishment of a transitional governing body based on mutual consent," added the statement.
The Conference will convene under the chairmanship of the Secretary-General Ban, first in an international high-level format at Montreux, Switzerland, on January 22. Negotiations between the two Syrian parties, facilitated by Joint Special Representative Lakhdar Brahimi, will start at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on January 24.
