The_Guardian_-_2016-12-29

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Russia
Turkey and Russia ‘agree terms of Syria
ceasefire’
Countries have agreed proposal that should come into force by midnight, says Turkish foreign
minister
Turkey’s president, Recip Tayyip Erdoğan (left), has reportedly reached a consensus over Syria with
his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. Photograph: AP
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor
Wednesday 28 December 2016 13.42 GMT First published on Wednesday 28 December 2016
10.33 GMT
Turkey and Russia have agreed on a proposal for a general ceasefire in Syria and will aim to put it
into effect by midnight on Wednesday night, Turkey’s foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said.
But he still insisted that Syrian president Bashar al-Assad must eventually go, a precondition for talks
that Russia has always opposed.
There was also no sign that the mainstream Syrian opposition groups had agreed to the ceasefire, and
it appears likely there will be be disagreement about the territory to be covered by any ceasefire. The
rebel groups will want it to extend to the Damascus countryside, something that Russia opposes.
A senior official in the opposition said they had not received the details of any official deal and
denied that they had agreed to a ceasefire agreement.
“The details of the ceasefire have not been presented officially to the opposition factions yet, and
there is no agreement at this point,” the official said.
Russia, Iran and Turkey said last week they were ready to help broker a peace deal after holding talks
in Moscow where they adopted a declaration setting out the principles any agreement should adhere