Several Syrian opposition groups have agreed on a unified position ahead of talks to end the conflict in their country, the groups said late Friday dpa reported.
Any political solution must include an end to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and the establishment of a transitional government with full authority, the opposition groups said after a meeting in Cordoba, Spain.
The declaration was issued by about 150 representatives of opposition groups after they concluded a two-day meeting in the southern Spain. The groups' position heading into the talks scheduled to begin later this month in Geneva is that current members of the regime can play a role neither in the transitional government nor the future of Syria, the declaration added.
The opposition representatives also said they were convinced that a "conference of national rescue" must be organized by all representatives of the Syrian revolution. They also called on the international community to advocate for the fall of the regime and for those responsible for crimes committed in Syria to be brought to justice.
The talks in Cordoba, which took place behind closed doors, were sponsored by the Spanish Foreign Ministry. Madrid saw the conference as a contribution to opening a transitional phase in Syria that would lead to a political solution of the conflict.
The gathering could represent "a first step to peace in Syria," the ministry said on Thursday.