UN's Ban Ki-moon urges 'flexibility' in Vienna talks

He urged the five main participants - the US, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Turkey - to abandon "national perspectives" for "global leadership".

These are the first such talks to include Iran, which - with Russia - backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

The US and its allies insist Mr Assad cannot be part of any solution.

The four-year-old war in Syria, which began with an uprising against Mr Assad, has left 250,000 people dead and forced half the country's population - or 11 million people - from their homes.

Russia and Iran have recently stepped up their military involvement in the conflict, backing forces loyal to Mr Assad.

 

(BBC)