Will ‘terrorists’ respect truce, asks Assad

His comments on Sunday came as the Syrian opposition said it had agreed to the “possibility” of a temporary truce, provided there were guarantees Damascus’s allies including Russia would cease fire, sieges were lifted and aid deliveries were allowed country-wide. 

“We have said that we are ready to stop military operations, but the issue relates to more important factors, such as preventing terrorists from using it to improve their positions,” Assad told Spanish newspaper El Pais in an interview. He also said any truce must ensure that “other countries, especially Turkey, are prevented from sending more terrorists and weapons, or any kind of logistical support”. 

Damascus refers to all insurgents fighting against the Syrian army and its allies as terrorists. Turkey, other Sunni regional powers and Western countries have supported insurgents fighting against Assad, whose forces are bolstered by Iran, Russia and Lebanese Hezbollah. 

Attempts to negotiate a truce in recent months have failed. The latest round of talks at the United Nations in Geneva is being jointly chaired by Russia and the United States. 

World powers agreed in Munich on Feb. 12 to a cessation of hostilities that would let humanitarian aid be delivered in Syria. The ceasefire was scheduled to start a week later, but did not take effect.