Syrian opposition figures head to Moscow this week although they are unlikely to welcome Russia's plan for a new anti-jihadist coalition that would include embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, AFP reports.
Moscow has since June been pushing a plan for a broader grouping than the US-led coalition fighting the "Islamic State" (ISIS) terrorist group, to include Syria's government and its allies. But the initiative faces an uphill struggle given Assad's pariah status in the West and much of the Middle East.
A first round of talks in the Russian capital on Tuesday with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir ended with the Arab diplomat publicly ruling out such a coalition.