Syrian peace talks sponsored by the United Nations have resumed in Geneva after they fell apart amid escalating bloodshed nearly a year ago.

UN Syria envoy Steffan de Mistura held his first meeting with the delegation of the Syrian government this morning and later met the head of the opposition delegation and a senior member of the largest opposition group.

The talks mark the latest bid to end the country's six-year civil war, in which hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and millions displaced.

However, Mr de Mistura has played down expectations for the talks, saying he was "not expecting a breakthrough".

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Opposition groups believe they will feature in a "greater role" in this round of talks, reflecting the changing dynamics inside Syria.

Factions are drifting away from the exiled opposition leadership and moving closer to ultra-conservative groups such as Ahrar al-Sham and the al-Qaeda linked Jabhat Fateh al-Sham.

In December, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces were able to expel rebel fighters from their longtime stronghold on the eastern side of the city of Aleppo, which was Syria's economic capital before the war began.

Mr de Mistura said Russia had asked the Syrian regime to halt air strikes during the Geneva talks.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, an opposition delegation member said they hoped to achieve "at least something at the human dimension: lifting the siege in certain areas, getting aid to those who are besieged."

He also hoped there would be serious work on the issue of political transition, a sticking point of past talks. "The world has to end this saga. The world has to end these brutalities," said Yahya al-Aridi.

In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Show all 30 1 /30 In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian family arrives at a checkpoint, manned by pro-government forces, at the al-Hawoz street roundabout, after leaving Aleppo's eastern neighbourhoods Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian woman, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, reacts as she stands with her children in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood, after regime troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian pro-regime fighters, gesture as they drive past resident fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian rebels withdrew from six more neighbourhoods in their one-time bastion of east Aleppo in the face of advancing government troops, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian rebels withdrew from six more neighbourhoods in their one-time bastion of east Aleppo in the face of advancing government troops, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian residents, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, arrive in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood , after regime troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian pro-regime fighters, gesture as they drive past residents fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian residents, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, arrive in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood, after regime troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian residents, fleeing violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood, arrive in Aleppo's Fardos neighbourhood Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian pro-regime fighter speaks with a child, as residents flee violence in the restive Bustan al-Qasr neighbourhood. Syrian rebels withdrew from six more neighbourhoods in their one-time bastion of east Aleppo in the face of advancing government troops AFP/Getty Images In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Smoke rises as seen from a governement-held area of Aleppo, Syria Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian soldiers targeting rebels-held areas in the eastern neighborhoods in Aleppo, Syria. According to media reports, the army is now holding on 99 percent of Aleppoís eastern neighborhoods EPA In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian pro-government forces patrol Aleppo's eastern al-Salihin neighbourhood after troops retook the area from rebel fighters Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian soldiers rest following the battle at al-Sheik Saeed neighborhood in Aleppo, Syria EPA In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian pro-government fighter walking past closed shops in the Bab al-Nasr district of Aleppo's Old City. Once renowned for its bustling souks, grand citadel and historic gates, Aleppo's Old City has been rendered virtually unrecognisable by some of the worst violence of Syria's war Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria The crucial battle for Aleppo entered its 'final phase' after Syrian rebels retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances. The retreat leaves opposition fighters confined to just a handful of neighbourhoods in southeast Aleppo, the largest of them Sukkari and Mashhad Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian civilans arrive at a checkpoint, manned by pro-government forces, at the al-Hawoz street roundabout, after leaving Aleppo's eastern neighbourhoods. Syria's government has retaken at least 85 percent of east Aleppo, which fell to rebels in 2012, since beginning its operation Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian civilians flee the Sukkari neighbourhood towards safer rebel-held areas in southeastern Aleppo Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrians celebrate in the government-held Mogambo neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, after rebel fighters retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrians celebrate in the government-held Mogambo neighbourhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo, after rebel fighters retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances. The fall of Aleppo would be the worst rebel defeat since Syria's conflict began in 2011, and leave the government in control of the country's five major cities Getty In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian refugee Aliya inside the tent where she lives with her husband and ten children in a camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Syrian refugee women and children outside the entrance to their tents in the refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA Wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA Wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A Syrian refugee woman outside the entrance to the tent where her family live, in the refugee camp in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon, close to the Syrian border PA wire In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria A vehicle drives past a mosque at night in Idlib, Syria. Picture taken with a long exposure Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Damaged buildings stand in the rebel-controlled town of Binnish in Idlib province, Syria Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria The night sky is seen through damaged windows in the rebel-controlled town of Binnish in Idlib province, Syria Reuters In Pictures: The crisis unfolding in Syria Damaged buildings stand in the rebel-controlled area of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province, Syria Reuters

Mr de Mistura also met with a group of Syrian women who came to push for the discussion of the fate of detainees and abducted people in the Syrian conflict. They held a symbolic moment of silence together.

"There are thousands and thousands of mothers, wives, daughters who are hoping that at least this aspect will be one of the benefits of any negotiation," he said.

The talks come after ceasefire discussions in Astana, Kazakhstan, which were coordinated largely by Turkey and Russia, who have backed opposite sides in the bloody civil war.

In those meetings, the two sides sat face-to-face and a fragile ceasefire has since mostly held, though daily violations have occurred.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has voiced hope for the success of a political settlement in Syria, saying it will help defeat the “terrorist malaise.” Mr Putin said at a meeting with Russian seamen today that Moscow's goal in Syria is to help stabilise what he called the legitimate government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and fight international terrorism.

Russia has conducted their air campaign in Syria since September 2015, helping turn the tide in Mr Assad's favour, and earning the ire of a number of Western governments, particularly France.

Mr Putin claimed the Russian military action had helped create conditions for talks between the government and the opposition in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana. He voiced hope that the process launched in Astana will be developed at the Syria peace talks in Geneva.

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After meeting Mr Assad's top negotiator at the talks, Russia's envoy to the United Nations said demands from rebels and their Western and Arab backers for Mr Assad to step down were “absurd”.

“The delegation of the (Syrian) government arrived in Geneva with constructive instructions to reach progress at these talks,” Ambassador Alexei Borodavkin told reporters.

“The agenda of these talks is not yet ready, as far as I understand,” he said. He was hoping for progress on creating a government of national unity, drafting a constitution and scheduling elections, as mandated by a UN resolution, he said.

The UN's children's agency urged all parties at the Geneva talks to put Syria's children first in attempting to bring about an end to the civil war.

“Since the start of this year, at least 20 children have reportedly been killed in attacks and many more injured, including a one-day old baby girl injured when her home was shelled in rural Damascus," Unicef's regional director Geert Cappelaere said.

"In addition, nearly two million children remain largely cut off from urgently needed humanitarian assistance.