A/HRC/31/68 sponsored and monitored by the United Nations. While borrowing some of its elements from the Geneva communiqué of June 2012, the Vienna declaration generated muchneeded political momentum among the parties. 9. Talks resumed in Vienna on 14 November with the same participants now under the International Syria Support Group, with the inclusion of the League of Arab States. In its statement, the Support Group expanded on the Vienna declaration, presenting a specific timeline for political transition and elections within 18 months. Formal negotiations between the Government and the opposition were set for 1 January 2016. The Support Group welcomed the efforts, together with the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, to “bring together the broadest possible spectrum of the opposition, chosen by Syrians, who will decide their negotiating representatives”. 10. On 9 December 2015, a meeting for the opposition was held in Riyadh with the aim of reaching an agreement on negotiating principles with the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic. In their final statement, the participants stressed the willingness of the opposition to engage in intra-Syrian negotiations, but insisted on a series of confidence-building measures by the Government as a sign of good faith before negotiations could be held. They also called for the departure of the Syrian President before the start of any transitional phase. A 34-member high negotiations committee was subsequently created. It includes a representation from the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, the National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change and armed groups. 11. In parallel to the Riyadh conference, a meeting representing the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – a force dominated by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), and including their allies among Arab and Assyrian armed groups – and other opposition groups was held in Derik, in the north-east of the Syrian Arab Republic. A political entity, the Democratic Syrian Assembly, was subsequently created to represent the group. 12. The unanimous adoption by the Security Council of resolution 2254 (2015) on 18 December was the successful culmination of both rounds of the Vienna talks. The resolution reflected the agreement among the permanent members of the Council on the conditions for a political solution, as expressed in the Vienna declaration and the statement made by the International Syria Support Group. In resolution 2254 (2015), the Council also called for a series of confidence-building measures by the parties, including unimpeded access to humanitarian aid and the release of detainees. Important differences remain among the parties, however, with regard to the fate of President Assad during and after a transitional period. The Secretary-General had warned that negotiations should not become hostage to this issue alone. 13. While a relative regional and international consensus underpinned the latest diplomatic push, certain issues must be settled for negotiations in Geneva to achieve some success. Specifically, a number of Syrian groups and independents, including those under the Democratic Syrian Assembly, who do not currently come under the umbrella of the high negotiations committee, have requested to participate in direct talks with the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic. The members of the high negotiating committee have also demanded that the Government take a number of confidence-building measures, in accordance with Security Council resolution 2254 (2015), before any negotiations can be held. Despite existing challenges, the efforts made by the Special Envoy have been instrumental in bringing the parties together and generating the consensus necessary for the latest political impetus. His good offices remain crucial for pushing the Geneva negotiations process forward and for keeping the momentum among the parties in the coming months. At the time of writing, intra-Syrian peace talks were scheduled to open on 29 January 2016. 4