International Community Backs Syria Peace Process

“This (UN security) council is sending a clear message to all concerned that the time is now to stop the killing in Syria”, John Kerry told the 15-nation council after the vote, Reuters reported on Saturday.

The resolution called for the United Nations to present the council with options for monitoring a ceasefire within one month of its adoption.

And the fate of Syrian President Bashar Assad in a political transition remains the most challenging issue of all.

The Syrian President has the support of Russian Federation, a permanent member on the Security Council, and Iran, who both want him to remain in power for the time being.

Agreement on a resolution came after a meeting of the so-called International Syria Support Group at New York’s Palace Hotel. “We have not been contacted by Moscow”, Najib Ghadbian said.

It also acknowledges that the peace process will not end the violence on its alone because it excludes terrorist groups – such as Isis and their rivals Jabhat al-Nusra – from participating in the ceasefire.

And in NY, the top U.S. diplomat has sought to reassure Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir that the United States is not going soft on the Syrian strongman.

On December 3, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said all Syrian opposition groups needed to be involved in talks with Damascus on reconciliation in the Vienna talks format.

In an interview with the NPO2 channel, Assad said the Western anti-terrorist effort in Iraq and Syria was based on geopolitical interests rather than values and did not reflect a realistic approach toward defeating terrorism.

Representatives of the US, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and other countries gathered on Friday to seek a possible political settlement for the war in Syria through a previous UN Security Council resolution. The passage of the resolution Friday, he said, is a step in the right direction.

“We should try avoiding the mistakes we have made”, he said at a news conference alongside Mr Kerry.

The Syrian conflict has lasted almost five years and killed more than 300,000 people.

The UN Secretary-General called on International Syria Support Group (ISSG) states to pressure the sides to immediately implement confidence-building measures, including an end to the indiscriminate use of weapons against civilians, unhampered access for humanitarian aid convoys and the release of all detainees.

The Vienna meeting also saw a United Nations statement calling for a ceasefire to be established on 14 May 2016 and for free elections to be held a year later.

Insurgent fractions, including the self-declared “Islamic State” group (IS) will not be included at the negotiation table for the country’s future, nor will the ceasefire apply to such jihadist belligerents, allowing worldwide air strikes on IS targets to continue.

Kerry traveled to Moscow this week to assure the Syrian leader’s key ally Russian President Vladimir Putin that Washington is not seeking “regime change” in Syria.

Administration officials insisted that was not the case, saying that Kerry is merely setting aside the question of Assad to be taken up later in negotiations among Syrians.

The U.N. Security Council has unanimously endorsed a road map for peace in Syria.