The UN special envoy on Syria, Staffan de Mistura, hopes to start peace talks in Geneva today between the government and opposition groups. The sides will not talk directly to each other to begin with, but negotiators will move between them. Priorities are to agree a general cease-fire, stop the IS threat, and clear the way for humanitarian aid. On Monday, the day the talks were originally scheduled to start, Mr de Mistura said, ‘We want to ensure that when and if we start, it will be on the right foot. It will be uphill.’ Turkey's foreign minister said that any participation of Kurdish forces in these peace talks would be dangerous and spell the end of the UN-led initiative. Meanwhile US vice-president Joe Biden said that the United States and Turkey are prepared for a military solution against IS in Syria if the Syrian government and rebels fail to reach a political settlement. See