DHAKA: Syria`s opposition and government will meet "in the same room" in Geneva on Saturday after the first day of a peace conference ended with no direct talks.
UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi, who held talks with both sides on Friday, said they all understood that the conference was trying to "save Syria".
The two sides have blamed each other for a lack of progress, reports BBC.
Diplomats say they are now aiming at small concessions such as local truces rather than an overall peace deal.
An unnamed source at the talks told Reuters news agency that the two sides had agreed to spend the next 48 hours discussing humanitarian access to the besieged city of Homs.
"The practical aspects have been worked on, things are ready and if the government doesn`t put a block on it then it could happen quickly," said the source.
Supporters of President Bashar al-Assad have surrounded rebels in Homs, besieging the central areas of the city for more than a year.
`Encouraging discussions`
The delegates are reportedly still not prepared to talk to each other directly, but are expected to communicate via Mr Brahimi.
"Tomorrow everybody will be in the same room but everybody will address Mr Lakhdar Brahimi," Louay Safi, a spokesman for the opposition Syrian National Coalition, told reporters late on Friday.
Preliminary talks began on Wednesday in Montreux, and Mr Brahimi spent Thursday and Friday attempting to persuade both sides to agree to meet face-to-face.
Friday was supposed to be the first day of official talks, but neither side would meet the other.
Instead, Mr Brahimi met government delegates in the morning, and the opposition in the afternoon.
On Friday, the government`s delegation reportedly threatened to quit the talks unless "serious" discussions were scheduled for Saturday.
Syria`s civil conflict has claimed well over 100,000 lives since it began in 2011.
The violence has also driven 9.5 million people from their homes, creating a major humanitarian crisis within Syria and for its neighbours.
BDST: 0904 HRS, JAN 25, 2014
