Syria President Bashar al-Assad declares he is ready to run for the post of president for a third term in 2014 (Photo: AP)

(VOVworld) – No appropriate grounds can be seen for any success at the second International Conference on Syria, known as the Geneva II conference, scheduled to take place in Switzerland in the middle of next month.
In an interview on Lebanon’s Al-Mayadeen television on Monday, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad raised many questions about the conference, and focused focus on the opposition forces and suggestions that they have connections to the Syrian people, or whether they just represented the countries that have invited them.

President Assad said the solution to end the war in Syria must be chosen by Syrians regardless whether it was recognized by world powers or not. Assad said he is ready to run for the post of president for a third term and that possibility depended on his own wishes and the aspirations of people.

In response to President Assad’s statement, US Secretary of State John Kerry said any efforts by Assad to win the election would prolong the civil war and the opposition faction would never agree on Assad’s continuation in power. Also on Monday, EU Foreign Ministers urged opposition forces in Syria to participate in the second Geneva Conference and encouraged the Syrian National Council to take the lead in negotiations.