Putin announces Syria cease-fire and peace talks
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RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin announced a cease-fire between Syrian opposition groups and the Syrian government from midnight last night.
The parties were also prepared to start peace talks, Putin said, after Russia, Iran and Turkey expressed readiness to broker a deal to settle the nearly six-year Syrian conflict.
The Syrian army announced a nationwide halt to fighting but said Islamic State and ex-Nusra Front militants and all groups linked to them would be excluded from the deal. It did not say which unnamed groups would be excluded.
Several rebel officials told reporters they had agreed to the cease-fire, due to come into effect at 10pm yesterday.
It was the third nationwide cease-fire agreed in Syria this year. The previous two, negotiated by Washington and Moscow, collapsed within weeks as warring sides accused each other of violations. The current deal does not involve the United States or United Nations.
One rebel commander expressed optimism this deal would hold. “This time I have confidence in its seriousness. There is new international input,” he said, without elaborating.
Talks on the latest truce picked up momentum after Russia, Iran and Turkey last week said they were ready to back a peace deal and adopted a declaration setting out principles that any agreement should adhere to.
Putin said opposition groups and the Syrian government had signed a number of documents, including the cease-fire, measures to monitor the truce, and a statement on peace talks.
“The agreements reached are, of course, fragile, need a special attention and involvement,” Putin said, adding “but, this is a notable result of our joint work, efforts by the defense and foreign ministries, our partners in the regions.”
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