Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has dampened hopes for international talks on the Syrian crisis late next month in Geneva. In a prerecorded interview with a Lebanese TV station, Assad said no date has been chosen for the talks.

President Bashar al-Assad: “There is no date, and there is no factors that help in holding it now if we want it to succeed. Meaning, who are the parties participating in Geneva? What is the relation of these forces to the Syrian people? Are they forces representing the Syrian people or forces representing the countries that made it?”

Assad also said he sees no barriers to running for re-election next year. The interview aired on Monday, exactly two months after the chemical attack in Ghouta that raised the immediate prospect of U.S. air strikes before an international deal was reached to dismantle Syria’s chemical arsenal. Secretary of State John Kerry and other diplomats are meeting with Syrian opposition members today in London.