Russian FM pessimistic on Syria truce chances

Turkey and Saudi Arabia could launch a ground operation against Islamic State (IS) militants in Syria, Turkey’s Foreign Minister says.

If the violence does ebb, that pause will just be used by all sides to retrench, regroup and prepare for further fighting, Landis said, with rebels trying to get arms in from suppliers in Turkey and Saudi Arabia and the Russians and Iranians doing what they can to bolster the Syrian army.

It remains unclear whether those commitments can be made to stick on the ground and whether deep differences regarding the truce and which groups would be eligible for it between the US and Russian Federation among others can be overcome.

Meanwhile, government forces have reportedly captured Tamopura, another village near Aleppo, as they tighten their grip around rebel-held parts of the country’s biggest city. She’s written a book about U.S.-Russia relations called “The Limits Of Partnership”.

Lavrov said that everyday military cooperation between Washington and Moscow in particular is “the key tool” to ensure delivery of humanitarian supplies and an end to hostilities. But he complained that coordination hasn’t gone beyond an agreement to avoid in-air accidents. Lavrov had said earlier that Russian and military leaders should work together to help arrange a cease-fire in Syria.

Lavrov said comments by USA officials raised the impression that their aim was to stop Russia’s military operation in Syria while the U.S.-led coalition’s continues – “although we are fighting the very same… organizations which the U.N. Security Council has designated as terrorist organizations”.

Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev said there was “no evidence of our bombing civilians, even though everyone is accusing us of this”.

Islamic State, driven by the goal of expanding its “caliphate” rather than reforming Syria – the original goal of the opposition when the conflict began as an unarmed street uprising in 2011 – is being targeted in separate campaigns by a U.S.-led alliance and Assad’s government with Russian air support.

The official said the developments in Syria now change rapidly, “by the hour”, and that Russian Federation is in control of the Syrian issue, adding that Moscow is focusing on reclaiming all territories the regime lost to opposition rebels and that they want to leave Daesh stronghold areas in eastern Syria to the end.

The entire International Syria Support Group, including Russian Federation, “has agreed to work to make that happen”, Kerry said.

JOHN KERRY: Because obviously, if people who are ready to be part of the political process are being bombed, we’re not going to have much of a conversation.

The opposition “may be pushed back here and there but they are not going to surrender”, Kerry said.

Hezbollah-run Al-Manar TV said government troops are now overlooking Hayan and parts of Anadan.

If the Syrian Government and the Opposition agree to the ceasefire details, that could pave the way for a new round of peace talks between President Bashar Assad’s Government and the Opposition, scheduled for February 25 in Geneva.

From “what country, except Turkey, do the terrorists commute to Syria?”

Brig-Gen Jazayeri was responding to a question on whether Iran planned to send more military advisers to Syria were Saudi troops to be deployed there, risking a direct confrontation between regional rivals Iran and Saudi Arabia.

Mr Cavusoglu also said it was possible that troops from his country and Saudi Arabia might participate in a ground operation against IS forces. The U.S. diplomat acknowledged that “many Europeans feel overwhelmed by the latest round of challenges, including concerns about the U.K.’s potential exit from the EU”.