(CNN) -- Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Saturday he is committed to resolving the crisis in his country as long as peace efforts are conducted in "neutrality and independence," state media reported. He addressed the conflict during a meeting in Damascus with Lakhdar Brahimi, the new international envoy to Syria. "The success of the political work is linked to pressing the countries which fund and train the terrorists, confiscate weapons into Syria to stop such acts," the president said, according to SANA. Brahimi, who recently replaced Kofi Annan as the U.N. and Arab League point man for the conflict, highlighted the need for both sides to find a resolution and reiterated that the Syrian people are his first priority.
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NEW: An opposition group says at least 164 people were killed Saturday
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The Syrian president says other nations are funding "terrorists"
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Lakhdar Brahimi makes his first visit to Damascus as U.N. envoy
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He met with the president and held "candid" talks with Syria's foreign minister
"I believe that the president is more aware than me of the scope and seriousness of this crisis," Brahimi said after his meeting with @placeholder.