The UK government sees no obstacle to talks with the Syrian group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), despite its inclusion on London's list of terrorist organizations, Defense Secretary John Healey said.
"The prescription is not a matter for now. It doesn't stop us from talking to all the parties, and our interest in HTS is that they live up to the rights of all individuals or groups [in accordance with the] international law to prevent Syria from becoming a basis for a fresh terrorist threat," Healey told Sky News.
Syrian armed opposition captured the capital of Damascus on Sunday. Russian officials said that President Bashar al-Assad had stepped down after negotiations with participants of the Syrian conflict and left Syria for Russia, where he was granted asylum. Mohammed al-Bashir, who ran an Idlib-based administration formed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and other opposition groups, was named interim prime minister on Tuesday.