Obama Tells Putin To Rein In Syria Air Strikes

“If Russia or the (President Bashar) Assad regime violates this agreement, what are the consequences?” he asked. We are simply trying to protect our national interests …

“This refers to military operations by Russian Federation and the Syrian regime around Aleppo and recent attacks by PYD militias in North Syria”, Steinmeier said, referring to a Syrian Kurdish party and its associated militias.

A Turkish official told reporters in Istanbul that his country is pushing for ground operations in Syria, hoping for the involvement of the US and other allies against IS.

We have seen this movie before in Ukraine: “Russia presses its advantage militarily, it creates new facts on the ground, it uses the denial and delivery of humanitarian aid as a bargaining chip, it negotiates an agreement to lock in the spoils of war”, McCain said.

If implemented, the truce deal would allow humanitarian aid to reach besieged towns.

“But we know that to find the path to peace again, the Russian bombing of civilians has to stop”, Valls told the conference.

Speaking to top diplomats at a session of the ongoing Munich Security Conference on Saturday, Medvedev says it is important to prevent Syria from disintegrating.

” I think Russian Federation has gained the upper hand in the region”, Roettgen said.

In the past, several deals on Syria have failed prompting words of caution from experts about the new agreement. “Russia is not trying to achieve some secret goals in Syria”.

The ultra-hardline Islamic State, whose main aim is to expand its “caliphate” rather than toppling Assad and reforming Syria, is being targeted in separate campaigns by a U.S.-led alliance and the Syrian government with Russian air support.

The comments came amid increasing criticism of Russia’s actions in Syria, in the wake of a ceasefire agreed to by world powers Friday, the details of which are still being worked out.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said 70 percent of his country’s population is under 35 and have grown up in the chaos of a lawless state after the government collapsed in 1991.

That has left the field to the Russians, who support Assad against an array of rebel groups backed by Turkey, Arab states and the West.

Meanwhile Turkey’s foreign minister said Turkey was mulling a ground invasion of Syria with Saudi forces.

Given Syria’s current chaotic landscape, however, it remains unclear which groups exactly will be party to the “cessation of hostilities” called for by the ISSG.