Russian Federation has not used all of its abilities in Syria yet: Putin

“As a effect, our view has been that you can not bring peace to Syria, you can not get an end to the civil war unless you have a government that it is recognised as legitimate by a majority of that country”.

Syrian President Bashar al Assad attended Christmas choir preparations in an ancient church close to a frontline area in the capital Damascus where his army is engaged in heavy fighting with rebels, state media said on Saturday.

Those around the table included the United States, key European nations and Saudi Arabia, who support the Syrian opposition, and the Assad government’s top allies, Russian Federation and Iran.

In that time more than 250,000 Syrians have been killed.

The resolution calls on the United Nations to monitor a ceasefire in Syria within one month of adopting the resolution.

Western powers had hoped the council would rubber-stamp a resolution endorsing a two-year road map for talks between Syria’s government and opposition on a unity government, expected to begin in January, and eventual elections.

“It is my firm belief and the belief of the experts in this administration, that so long as Assad is there, we can not achieve that kind of stability inside of Syria”, Obama told reporters at his year ender news conference on Friday.

French foreign minister Laurent Fabius said the negotiations would succeed only with credible guarantees on Assad’s departure. Although the resolution states that elections should take place within the next 18 months, it does not give any clue about a possible candidacy or withdrawal from the Syrian president.

He made the remarks following the third round of worldwide talks on the crisis in Syria in NY on Friday.

A number of states are conducting military campaigns in the Syria against the group.

Any halt to hostilities would not apply to air strikes against so-called Islamic State and other terrorist groups, it makes clear, amid fears they could otherwise benefit. “There was a very rigorous discussion this morning, as you might imagine, about who might or might not qualify as a terrorist”, he said.

He said that the powers were supposed to identify terrorist groups in Syria aside from the IS and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front.

The plan was also described as unrealistic by the Istanbul-based National Coalition, the main Syrian opposition grouping.

Hijab’s position highlights the deep differences over Assad’s fate and a future political transition in Syria among the parties to the talks.