BEIRUT: Syria said on Saturday it is willing to participate in “preliminary consultations” in Moscow aimed at restarting peace talks next year to end its civil war.

“Syria is ready to participate in preliminary consultations in Moscow in order to meet the aspirations of Syrians to find a way out of crisis,” state television said, quoting a source at the Syrian Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, the Islamic State has lost ground in the Syrian border town of Kobani, where Kurdish fighters now control more than 60 percent of territory, a monitoring group said.

The strategically located town on the border with Turkey has become a major symbol of resistance against IS, which has seized large parts of Syria and Iraq, committing widespread atrocities.

Supported by US-led airstrikes and reinforced by Kurds from Iraq, “Kurdish forces now control more than 60 percent of the city,” said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

“IS has even left areas that the Kurds did not enter for fear of mines,” he added.

A Kurdish activist from Kobani, Mustefa Ebdi, said that Kurdish militia defending the town had advanced eastwards on the frontline during the past week.

IS has withdrawn from the seized Kurdish militia headquarters in the north of the city, as well as from southern and central districts, according to activists.

“The Kurdish advance is due largely to the air strikes by the coalition,” said Ebdi.

“The terrorists are now using tunnels after failing in their tactics of car bombs and explosive belts,” he said.