India set to attend Geneva II talks on Syria

India, which has always pressed for dialogue to solve the Syrian crisis, is all set to attend the Jan 22 Geneva II peace conference, said a government official Tuesday.

Around 30 nations are going to attend the conference in the city of Montreux, Switzerland.

While a formal invite is yet to be issued, India has been informed "fairly authentically" it would be among the countries to be invited, said external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin at a briefing here.

"We are in the process for participation in the conference, and it would be formalised when we get a formal invite," he said.

Akbaruddin said India's interest in developments in Syria is well known. "In the recent past we've had contacts with the government of Syria and the main opposition, the National Coordination Committee for the Forces of Democratic Change. We have evinced interest for participation."

Dec 3, India announced $1 million to the trust of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons at The Hague for destruction of Syria's chemical weapons and related facilities.

Syria's three-year-old conflict has resulted in over 100,000 people losing their lives and thousands fleeing the country as rebels seek to overthrow the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.