UN suspends Syria peace talks in Geneva

The UN has suspended Syria peace talks in Geneva on Wednesday.

UN envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura announced a “temporary pause” in peace talks due to intensified fighting in Syria.

"This is not the end, and it is not the failure of the talks," de Mistura said after meeting with the delegation of Syrian opposition in Geneva on Wednesday night.

De Mistura set the date of Feb. 25 for the resumption of the peace talks in Geneva.

The Syria peace talks were officially declared underway Monday as de Mistura met Syrian opposition delegates in Geneva.

The opposition delegation, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), had been waiting for the regime delegation to address humanitarian issues in Syria to begin negotiations.

The opposition also wanted UN Security Council Resolution 2254 to be fully implemented by all parties before starting the negotiations.

The resolution constitutes a road map for peace in Syria that sets timetables for negotiations and outlines a nationwide cease-fire to begin as soon as initial steps toward a political transition are made.

The peace talks were expected to focus on setting up an interim government, write a constitution and staging elections within two years.

Initial priorities included establishing a cease-fire, supplying humanitarian aid and tackling the Daesh issue.

All parties in the conflict met in Geneva in a UN-brokered bid to end the five-year war, which has caused more than 250,000 deaths and displaced more than 11 million people.