Spartan Echo

ZURICH (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met on Wednesday in hopes of resolving differences over who is eligible to join U.N.-mediated peace talks for Syria due to begin next week.

The State Department said the two men had discussed plans for the negotiations that the U.N. special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura hopes to convene in Geneva on Jan. 25 and “the importance of maintaining progress toward a diplomatic solution to the crisis.” But, it was not immediately clear if the differences had been resolved.

In the meeting, Kerry also called for Russia to use its influence with Syrian President Bashar Assad “to ensure immediate, unimpeded and sustained humanitarian access to all Syrians in need,” State Department spokesman John Kirby said, particularly in besieged communities like Madaya, where deaths from starvation have been reported.

Differences over which Syrian opposition groups should be labeled terrorists and barred from the negotiations have threatened to delay the talks, the first step in a proposed 18-month political transition for Syria, mired in civil war.

Lavrov, asked as the meeting began if the Syria negotiations would begin as planned, told reporters, “We will see, we will see.”

Referring to the composition of the opposition delegation, he said, “It’s mostly for de Mistura, not for us.”

Kerry kept silent.

Russia and Iran, which back Assad, have immense differences with Saudi Arabia, other Arab states, the United States and Europe over which opposition groups should be considered terrorists and therefore excluded from an 18-month political transition process the U.N. has endorsed.

One dispute is over the groups Ahrar-as-Sham and Jaish al-Islam. Russia and Syria consider terrorists; Saudi Arabia, the United States and others view as legitimate opposition groups.

On Monday, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon urged countries backing opposing sides in the Syrian conflict to redouble efforts to reach agreement on the eligible opposition groups.

U.N. officials say they are focused on starting the talks as planned on Monday. But they say they cannot send out invitations until the key countries agree on an opposition list.

In Zurich, Kerry and Lavrov also discussed the situation in Ukraine and compared notes on how to speed up the full implementation of an agreement to end hostilities in the east, where government troops are continuing to battle Russia-backed separatists, Kirby said. The two also discussed possible responses to North Korea’s latest nuclear test, he said.

Kerry left the meeting in Zurich to participate in the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort town of Davos, where he will see a number of world leaders over the next two days, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.