Turkey and Russia 'agree terms of Syria ceasefire'
Source: The Guardian
Countries have agreed proposal that should come into force by midnight, says Turkish foreign minister
Turkey and Russia have agreed on a proposal for a general ceasefire in Syria and will aim to put it into effect by midnight on Wednesday night, Turkeys foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said. But he still insisted that Syrian president Bashar al-Assad must eventually go, a precondition for talks that Russia has always opposed.
There was also no sign that the mainstream Syrian opposition groups had agreed to the ceasefire, and it appears likely there will be be disagreement about the territory to be covered by any ceasefire. The rebel groups will want it to extend to the Damascus countryside, something that Russia opposes. A senior official in the opposition said they had not received the details of any official deal and denied that they had agreed to a ceasefire agreement.
The details of the ceasefire have not been presented officially to the opposition factions yet, and there is no agreement at this point, the official said. Russia, Iran and Turkey said last week they were ready to help broker a peace deal after holding talks in Moscow where they adopted a declaration setting out the principles any agreement should adhere to.
There are two texts ready on a solution in Syria. One is about a political resolution and the other is about a ceasefire. They can be implemented any time, Çavuşoğlu told reporters on the sidelines of an awards ceremony at the presidential palace in Ankara. He said Syrias opposition would never back Assad. The whole world knows it is not possible for there to be a political transition with Assad, and we also all know that it is impossible for these people to unite around Assad.
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/dec/28/turkey-russia-agree-terms-syria-ceasefire
They are trying to bypass both the US and the UN.
louis-t
(23,292 posts)In 3...2...1...
Devil Child
(2,728 posts)In my opinion. If Turkey and Russia have the dedication and ability to enforce a cease-fire or better yet work towards resolution of the war then that is more important than US or UN involvement.
I doubt either Turkey or Russia have that ability though.
karynnj
(59,501 posts)It also seems, that if anything, they are LESS together on what the political solution should be, with Turkey calling for Assad to leave as a precondition - something the US had dropped almost a year ago.
This is clearly intended to bypass both the UN and the US. The US has struggled very very hard for the last two years and been foiled at every step by the complex forces involved. If the Guardian accounts are accurate - and they have been pretty reliable - this ceasefire is DOA as at least one side of the conflict (the rebels) have not even had the agreement presented to them.
My question is how long will Russia work with the unpredictable Turkey before they wish they could negotiate with Secretary Kerry? Keeping Turkey in check was actually one of the PROBLEMS the US faced in this.
IntraPolitico
(51 posts)I really worry that the West's influence on this conflict will be diminished if this results in a good outcome (unlikely if you ask me)