Russian PM warns of world war in Syrian conflict

World powers agreed to implement a “nationwide cessation of hostilities” beginning in a week’s time at crisis talks over Syria’s civil war in Munich, Germany.

What he envisions a week from now, Kerry said, “is a pause”. “Everybody today agreed”, he said. What we have here are words on paper.

Egeland told reporters Friday that he hoped aid could roll in “once we have all the access that we need”.

“We have to think ahead in the event that doesn’t work”, Mr. McGurk said of the Munich talks.

The tactic of agreeing to a future break in hostilities, while continuing to fight for gains on the ground, is one Moscow’s allies used in eastern Ukraine only a year ago.

The cessation also doesn’t go into effect for another week, giving government forces and their Russian backers several more days to press on their offensive against rebel-held areas of Aleppo. America’s insistence on sticking to diplomacy has frustrated Syrian opposition leaders who say the U.S.is losing leverage with Moscow and by extension hurting innocent Syrians.

Diplomats cautioned that Russian Federation had until now not demonstrated any interest in seeing Assad replaced and was pushing for a military victory. It was their first meeting since the countries broke off diplomatic relations in early January.

Washington has largely steered clear of intervening in the main battlefields of Syria’s civil war in the west of the country, leaving the field to Russian Federation which began its air campaign on September 30 previous year.

“Everybody’s calculations have shifted” following events of the past few weeks, one diplomat said.

“Plan B” would consist of a sharp escalation of the U.S. military intervention in Syria, carried out under the cover of combating ISIS, but directed at toppling the Assad government.

“We wait with eager anticipation to see whether this agreement is a turning point or a false dawn”, he said.

“In many ways this Munich meeting was thrust to the fore by the situation in Aleppo, and yet the conditions of the agreement do not seem to apply to Aleppo”, said Barnes-Dacey.

It cautioned, however, that the agreement must prove to be effective before it joins political talks with government representatives in Geneva. “Hopefully, we’ll see something by Monday”.

George Sabra, a key member of the Syrian opposition’s Higher Negotiations Committee, said on Friday that the rebels “are the ones who will decide on the implementation of this truce”. He said “that’s our objective and we will achieve it”.

The Obama administration has issued no warning to the American people that it is embarking on a policy in Syria that could pit the U.S. against the Russian military and potentially trigger a global catastrophe.

If the ceasefire does come to pass against all the odds, local powers including Iran and Saudi Arabia have promised to begin delivering aid to the people of Syria.

“If this agreement is to work, this bombing will have to stop: no cessation of hostilities will last if moderate opposition groups continue to be targeted”, he said. Instead, it has turned into an emergency session to put the process back on track.

A complete cease-fire? Not exactly, according to Reuters. “During that week, the ISSG taskforce will develop modalities for the cessation of hostilities”. Any fighting group that signed on to and complied with a cease-fire would be exempt from airstrikes.

Lavrov underlined that “terrorist organisations” such as IS and Al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front “do not fall under the truce, and we and the US-led coalition will keep fighting these structures”. Opposition groups embedded with al-Nusra in the anti-Assad fight would have to decide whether to sever those links and separate themselves geographically from the militants.

This cease-fire will play to Assad’s advantage in those negotiations.

Western efforts at “political transitions” led to bloodshed and refugees, Maj.

Russia’s foreign ministry reacted angrily to the report.