Syria's Assad says peace talks tied to ending aid to 'terrorists'

Reuters
Syria's President Bashar al-Assad speaks during an interview with al-Mayadin television station, in Damascus, in this handout photograph distributed by Syria's national news agency SANA October 21, 2013. REUTERS/SANA/Handout via Reuters

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who met with United Nations envoy Lakhdar Brahimi on Wednesday, said the success of peace talks was tied to "stopping support for terrorist groups." He was quoted on state television as saying "the success of any political solution is tied to stopping support for terrorist groups and pressuring their patron states". It was not clear if he was speaking to Brahimi. (Reporting by Oliver Holmes and Stephen Kalin; editing by Mike Collett-White)