Opposition groups say Russian Federation, which co-sponsors the United Nations peace process, is part of the problem and not the solution, because it has provided strong air support for fighters loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Advertisement
Over the past few weeks, Russian Federation and the USA have been working on a ceasefire deal with hopes to ease the situation in Syria. The two countries had hoped to conclude a deal in Geneva nearly two weeks ago and then again over the weekend in China, where world leaders had gathered for the Group of 20 summit, but came away empty-handed.
USA and Russian officials conducted intense negotiations earlier this week on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hangzhou, China, in pursuit of agreement on a renewed cease-fire in Syria.
Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to meet his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in Geneva today, to broker a cease-fire, expand military cooperation and increase humanitarian assistance in Syria.
As diplomatic efforts intensified, fighting in the complex war continued to claim lives, with Turkish shelling over the border into Syria killing six US-backed Kurdish fighters. Regime forces backed by the Russian air force have completely encircled opposition-held neighborhoods.
An AFP correspondent in the city’s east said shops had been struggling since Sunday to secure goods to sell and that prices were skyrocketing.
The opposition hopes new talks would result in an 18-month transition that would see Syria governed by an interim body made up of opposition figures, current government representatives and members of civil society, according to a 25-page blueprint.
Meanwhile, the top military commander of the Army of Conquest, the largest rebel alliance, was killed in an air strike during a meeting of the leaders of the anti-government group, Islamist sources said Thursday.
In addition to those killed, Syria’s conflict has chased millions of people from their homes, contributing to Europe’s worst refugee crisis since World War II.
Turkey said Wednesday that it favored a joint operation with the USA to oust the IS group from its de facto capital of Raqa in northern Syria.
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he had agreed with Obama to do “what is necessary” to drive IS out of Raqa.
The officials said the talks could continue beyond Friday but wouldn’t go on indefinitely. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the dead included four children and that 30 people were wounded.
“We’re not at a point where we can confirm (A) a meeting and (B) that it’s worth his while to go have a meeting”, State Department spokesman Mark Toner said at a briefing Thursday afternoon.
The government advance further seals off Aleppo’s opposition-held eastern districts.
Advertisement
They have also discussed ways to open up humanitarian delivery routes into cities such Aleppo, which has been under a siege of the Syrian regime.
