He was speaking after a Cabinet meeting in which French foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said he was concerned over the breakdown in negotiations following a surge of violence in the northern city of Aleppo that has threatened a wider two-month ceasefire in the war-torn country.
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The city is divided between Bashar al-Assad’s government forces, Western-backed opposition forces and Al Nusra Front rebels not party to the ceasefire. The US has issued a number of threats against Assad since the civil war first erupted five years ago, including Kerry’s warning that Assad’s days were “numbered” in 2011, and President Barack Obamas declaration that chemical weapons were a “red line” that, if used by Assad’s regime, would prompt decisive US action.
The Syrian climb-down came after Washington said the United States and Russian Federation had agreed to push the warring parties to extend their shaky ceasefire, which has seen more than 280 civilians killed in fighting since April 22.
“Our objective remains, and has always been, a single nationwide cessation of hostilities covering all of Syria – not a series of local truces”, he said.
“I believe everyone knows and can conclude that there could be no return to the political talks in Geneva if a ceasefire in and around Aleppo is not observed”, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said on Wednesday prior to the official announcement of the agreement.
The Syrian military confirmed the truce but said it would take effect Thursday and last for 48 hours.
The armistice comes after reaffirmations that truces in the Damascus suburbs and Latakia province would continue.
“The government forces are fighting off a large-scale offensive by the jihadists (in Aleppo)”, he told the council.
United Nations humanitarian adviser Jan Egeland said on Wednesday that the Syrian government had refused United Nations demands to deliver aid to hundreds of thousands of people, including many in violence-torn Aleppo.
The officials say they have seen a decrease in violence since then but acknowledge that violations persist in some areas. Toner adds that “one problem in Aleppo has been the “intermingling” of moderate rebels and those linked to al-Qaida”.
Besides the dead, more than 1,500 people have been wounded in Aleppo as a result of the fighting.
De Mistura, said the alternative to a cease-fire in Aleppo is “catastrophic”, raising the possibility that 400,000 people could head for the Turkish border.
He also said the violence and killing must stop.
Russian Federation has said a new ceasefire to halt fighting in Aleppo could be imminent, with Syria’s divided northern city hit by a wave of violence that has killed more than 270 people since April 22.
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Earlier this week Morning Edition spoke with New York Times correspondent Declan Walsh, who recently visited Aleppo.
