Assad negotiators meet UN envoy at Syria peace talks

Syrian regime officials met the United Nations on Wednesday for talks on ending the deadly conflict after threatening to skip negotiations over the opposition's call for Bashar al-Assad to step down.

The Syrian regime initially refused to confirm its attendance at the UN-brokered peace talks which began on Tuesday after the opposition signalled it would maintain a hard-line on Assad's removal from office.

But a delegation of regime officials met on Wednesday with UN mediator Staffan de Mistura at a luxury Geneva hotel and later at the UN after securing key concessions, including keeping the future of Assad off the table.

The talks have achieved little through seven previous rounds but there are hopes the latest bid may make progress.

De Mistura said the atmosphere in his meeting with the government was  "constructive and professional". He said the talks may stretch into next week. 

Government delegation chief Bashar al-Jaafari declined to speak to reporters. 

Opposition seeks direct negotiations

The opposition, united in one delegation for the first time, has stressed it is anxious for face-to-face talks with the Assad regime.

"As the other party (Damascus) has arrived, we want to move rapidly, as quickly as possible to a direct negotiation," rebel delegation chief Nasr al-Hariri told reporters at the UN before entering an evening meeting with de Mistura. 

The envoy has said he would push for direct talks once the opposition unified, but a source close to the government told AFP Damascus would not agree to sit around a table with rebel negotiators at this stage. 

Hariri has said his camp was still insisting on Assad's removal as part of any peace deal, defying calls for moderation and reportedly infuriating the government.

De Mistura had voiced hope the coming round would mark the first "real negotiation" on a possible deal to end the six-year war which has claimed more than 340,000 lives, forced millions to flee their homes and left Syria in ruins. 

He has also warned the opposition that intransigence on the Assad issue might no longer be tenable.

In September, he said the opposition needed to be "realistic" and accept that "they didn't win the war" - a statement supported by facts on the ground. 

The decision last week by Syrian opposition groups to send a single delegation to Geneva raised hopes of a possible breakthrough. 

The new opposition negotiating team includes members of the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee (HNC), which insists on Assad's departure, as well as representatives of groups based in Moscow and Cairo that have a more moderate stance on the president. 

Despite Hariri's firm public position on the Assad stalemate, a European diplomat said the situation was fluid. 

"We expect (the opposition) will be pragmatic and flexible," the diplomat said, requesting anonymity. 

An opposition delegate, who requested anonymity, denied that his side was under pressure to abandon its hard-line stance on Assad, calling such reports "absolutely untrue". 

A flexible opposition will likely help the UN's peace push, which has been overshadowed by negotiations spearheaded by Moscow. 

Western powers are concerned that Russia is seeking to take a leading role in the peace process and will carve out a settlement that will largely favour Assad.