Syria crisis: Diplomats meet over peace talks delay

There is disagreement over who should attend the talks and what its agenda should be

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Talks have begun in Switzerland between UN-Arab League envoy Lakhdar Brahimi and US and Russian diplomats to try to pave the way for a Syria peace summit.

Attempts to set up a conference to end the Syrian conflict have been going on for months amid disputes over who should attend and its agenda.

Mr Brahimi will also meet delegates from the rest of the UN Security Council and Syria's neighbours.

Meanwhile, the UN says the number of Syrians needing aid has soared.

Aid agencies have warned that more than nine million Syrians are now in need of humanitarian relief.

Dozens of senior diplomats are gathered in Geneva, including the US under-secretary of state and Russia's deputy foreign minister. They will be joined by the other permanent members of the UN Security Council - the UK, France and China - as well as Syria's neighbours Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan and Turkey.

Only Syria's government and opposition groups can reach a peace deal and make it stick - but they are not in Geneva, and they continue to disagree, says the BBC's Imogen Foulkes from the talks venue.

The Syrian government expects to take part in eventual negotiations, while the opposition says Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should step down first.

A conference for later this month has been suggested, but this has not been confirmed.

Late on Monday, Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zohbi said his country would not take part in the proposed conference if the aim was to get Mr Assad to step down.

"We will not go to Geneva to hand over power as desired by [Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud] al-Faisal and certain opponents abroad," he said in comments carried by the official Sana news agency.

In Moscow on Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated that Iran, a key ally of Syria, must be among those invited.

"This includes all of Syria's neighbours, this includes almost all countries of the Persian [Arabian] Gulf including, of course, not only the Arab countries, but also Iran; this includes the permanent members of the UN Security Council, and other countries such as Turkey."

On Sunday, the head of the Syrian National Coalition, the main opposition group, said it would boycott a meeting if it involved Iran.

The Coalition has also insisted on agreement that President Assad must step down if it is to attend any talks.

The UN estimates that more than two million people have fled Syria since the unrest began in March 2011 resulting in a humanitarian crisis.

Most have sought refuge in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt.

More than 100,000 people are estimated to have been killed since the conflict began.