Syrian govt says ready for talks

The Syrian government has reportedly told UN envoy Staffan de Mistura it's ready for peace talks without pre-conditions.

The Syrian government has told a visiting UN envoy it is ready for peace talks without pre-conditions starting from April 15, state TV reports.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem was meeting UN envoy Staffan de Mistura in Damascus on Monday ahead of the resumption of talks in Geneva later this week.

The previous round broke off on March 24 with little progress made.