Syria war: Putin says 'safe zones' have international support

[Divergent]

Russia, the US, Turkey, Iran and Syria are close to agreeing the establishment of "safe zones" in Syria aimed at ensuring the viability of a ceasefire, Vladimir Putin says.

The Russian president said they would amount to no-fly zones.

Mr Putin said his US counterpart Donald Trump had told him in a phone call on Tuesday that he supported the idea.

A final decision must be made at Syria talks currently taking place in the Kazakh capital Astana, Mr Putin said.

However, Syrian rebels say they have suspended participation in the Astana talks because of continuing air strikes.

The Russian plan calls for safe zones to be established in rebel-held territory in the north-western province of Idlib, in parts of Homs province in the centre, in the south and in the opposition enclave of Eastern Ghouta near Damascus, the AFP news agency reported citing a copy of the plan.

The safe zones would end violence and allow for the return of refugees and the delivery of aid. They would be surrounded by checkpoints manned by rebels and government troops. Foreign troops could also be deployed in observer roles, the document said.

"One of the ways in which the ceasefire can be made to last is through creating safe zones or de-escalation zones," Mr Putin said, speaking in the Black Sea resort of Sochi after talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Mr Trump and I discussed this over the phone yesterday. As far as I understood, the US administration supports these ideas.

"Russia has held preliminary consultations with Damascus and Tehran. We all agree that mechanisms must be created to guarantee an end to bloodshed and create conditions for the start of political dialogue."

Mr Putin said aircraft "would not work" in the de-escalation zones "provided there is no military activity in these zones".

Further talks would determine how the safe zones would be controlled, he said.


Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-39797904

 

[T-123456]

Russia, the US, Turkey, Iran and Syria are close to agreeing the establishment of "safe zones" in Syria aimed at ensuring the viability of a ceasefire, Vladimir Putin says.

The Russian president said they would amount to no-fly zones.

Mr Putin said his US counterpart Donald Trump had told him in a phone call on Tuesday that he supported the idea.

A final decision must be made at Syria talks currently taking place in the Kazakh capital Astana, Mr Putin said.

However, Syrian rebels say they have suspended participation in the Astana talks because of continuing air strikes.

The Russian plan calls for safe zones to be established in rebel-held territory in the north-western province of Idlib, in parts of Homs province in the centre, in the south and in the opposition enclave of Eastern Ghouta near Damascus, the AFP news agency reported citing a copy of the plan.

The safe zones would end violence and allow for the return of refugees and the delivery of aid. They would be surrounded by checkpoints manned by rebels and government troops. Foreign troops could also be deployed in observer roles, the document said.

"One of the ways in which the ceasefire can be made to last is through creating safe zones or de-escalation zones," Mr Putin said, speaking in the Black Sea resort of Sochi after talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

"Mr Trump and I discussed this over the phone yesterday. As far as I understood, the US administration supports these ideas.

"Russia has held preliminary consultations with Damascus and Tehran. We all agree that mechanisms must be created to guarantee an end to bloodshed and create conditions for the start of political dialogue."

Mr Putin said aircraft "would not work" in the de-escalation zones "provided there is no military activity in these zones".

Further talks would determine how the safe zones would be controlled, he said.


Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-39797904

They came up with these no-fly zones only after my country started bombing the YPG/PKK held areas,our so called allies like working against my country but not to worry,all will be good in the end.

 

[H!TchHiker]

http://www.arabnews.com/

Russia, Iran, Turkey sign on ‘de-escalation zones’ in Syria

BEIRUT: Turkey, Iran and Russia have signed an agreement calling for the setting up of four “de-escalation zones” in war-torn Syria in the latest attempt to reduce violence in the Arab country.
But as officials form the three countries backing rival sides in the conflict signed the agreement on Thursday at the Syria cease-fire talks in Kazakhstan, some members of the Syrian opposition delegation shouted in protest and walked out of the conference room in Astana, the Kazakh capital.
The opposition has protested Iran’s participation at the conference, accusing it of being a party in the war that’s killed some 400,000 people.
The Kazakhstan agreement calls for setting up four zones in northern, central and southern Syria. However, no details were provided about how violence will be reduced in these areas.

 

[Banglar Bir]

Russia, Turkey, Iran ink deal on safe zones in Syria.

• Tribune Desk
• Published at 08:07 PM May 04, 2017

An aid convoy of food and medical supplies reaches the rebel-held besieged Syrian town of Douma, Damascus, Syria May 3, 2017 REUTERS
After talks with Turkey counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the safe zones were meant to lead to 'further pacification and cessation of hostilities'
Syrian regime allies Russia and Iran and rebel supporter Turkey on Thursday signed a memorandum on a Moscow-backed plan to create safe zones in Syria to bolster a fragile truce.

But as officials form the three countries backing rival sides in the conflict signed the agreement on Thursday at the Syria cease-fire talks in Kazakhstan, some members of the Syrian opposition delegation shouted in protest and walked out of the conference room in Astana, the Kazakh capital.

The opposition has protested Iran’s participation at the conference, accusing it of being a party in the war that’s killed some 400,000 people.

The Kazakhstan agreement calls for setting up four zones in northern, central and southern Syria. However, no details were provided about how violence will be reduced in these areas.

“Over the past two days, the participants in the Astana talks reviewed the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and the cessation of hostilities,” Kazakhstan’s foreign minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov said of a frail truce brokered by Moscow and Ankara in December.

“As a result the guarantor countries agreed to sign a memorandum on the creation of de-escalation zones in Syria.”

Boosting ceasefire
Syrian rebels said earlier Thursday that they had resumed participation in the talks after having suspended their involvement a day earlier over air strikes against civilians.

After talks with Turkey counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the safe zones were meant to lead to “further pacification and cessation of hostilities.”

He also said the proposed zones would also be no-fly areas if fighting on the ground there stopped entirely.

The Kremlin’s plan echoes calls by US leader Donald Trump to establish safe zones in Syria.

Putin said Wednesday that “as far I could tell” the US leader broadly supported the idea in a phone call they held on Tuesday.

Erdogan said in comments published Thursday that Moscow’s plan to set up these zones in Syria would “50 percent” solve the six-year conflict.

Damascus supports the Russian plan, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.

More than 320,000 people have been killed in Syria since the country’s war began with anti-government protests in March 2011.

 

[Hack-Hook]

But as officials form the three countries backing rival sides in the conflict signed the agreement on Thursday at the Syria cease-fire talks in Kazakhstan, some members of the Syrian opposition delegation shouted in protest and walked out of the conference room in Astana, the Kazakh capital.

The opposition has protested Iran’s participation at the conference, accusing it of being a party in the war that’s killed some 400,000 people.

It seems some parties have other agenda than ending the conflict .

 

[EmeraldRabbit]

It seems some parties have other agenda than ending the conflict .

Looking at the current scenario, the west is moving against Turkey (with the mainstream media rhetoric) and arming up anti-Turk Kurd rebels. Makes sense for them to ally themselves with the other side for the time being as it serves their interests (not to mentioned the attempted coup)

 

[Banglar Bir]

Another peace deal
An agreement to halt fighting in four zones of Syria
All planes are to be barred from these areas

Middle East and Africa
May 5th 2017| BEIRUT
RUSSIA’S announcement that Syrian warplanes will stop flying over some of the country’s bloodiest battlefields should be cause for joy. No accurate figure exists for the number of people killed during the war, but monitoring groups estimate that 470,000 have died, the vast majority of them civilians. What is certain, however, is that the Syrian air force, with the help of Russia and Iran, has killed most of these people. Its helicopters and warplanes have dropped bombs, missiles and gas on schools, hospitals and homes. Ending the slaughter means first grounding the regime’s air force.

Under the terms of a deal signed by Russia, Iran and Turkey at talks in Kazakhstan on May 4th, this is what is supposed to happen. All operations, including Syrian military flights, will supposedly stop in four “de-escalation zones” within the country where opposition fighters still hold considerable territory. If all sides abide by the deal, then these areas will become safe zones that could, at some stage, be policed by troops from Russia and Turkey. Russian news outlets speculated that troops from Brazil and India may also play a role in peacekeeping. Donald Trump is reported to have approved the agreement in a call with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.

The ambitious plan is the latest in a series of attempts to put an end to the six-year war. Details on exactly how it will work on the ground are thin and there are a number of possible spoilers. Key to the plan’s success will be the Syrian government’s commitment to its terms. Backed by its allies Russia and Iran, the regime has repeatedly vowed to continue fighting until it controls the entire country. In trying, it has often acted against the interests of both its main sponsors.

The rebels are justifiably suspicious of the deal, pointing out that Russia has failed to rein in its unruly partner in the past. They are also deeply sceptical about the role of Iran, which they accuse of deliberately stoking sectarian hatred during the war (rebel representatives walked out of talks on Wednesday in protest at Iran’s role as a signatory and guarantor of the latest deal). This mistrust has seen previous ceasefire agreements collapse within weeks, with both sides accusing each other of violating their terms.

Little has changed to make it any more likely that this latest effort will succeed where the others have failed. Under the new deal, Russia, Iran and the regime are still allowed to target jihadists linked to al-Qaeda, who fight side by side with other rebel factions in some parts of the country, including within the designated safe areas. The regime has in the past used this co-operation to justify breaking ceasefires and bombing rebel positions. In Idlib, which is supposed to fall inside one of the four safe zones, al-Qaeda-linked factions now dominate an alliance of rebel groups that controls most of the province. It is unlikely that the regime will stop its bombing campaign there. Nor is it likely that the rebel alliance will stop attacking the regime. Both sides will accuse the other of violating the ceasefire.

Like Idlib, many of the areas where the conflict will supposedly be paused as part of the deal have seen an escalation in fighting in recent months. Government forces and pro-regime militias have tightened the sieges of Eastern Ghouta, a densely populated rebel-held suburb of Damascus, and the rebel redoubt north of the city of Homs. The deal will also cover an area in the south, along the Jordanian border, where American-backed rebel forces have made gains against both Islamic State and government forces since the start of the year. “As of the sixth of this month all military operations will be ceased,” the head of the Russian delegation to the talks in Kazakhstan, Alexander Lavrentyev, said. “All Syrian flights over these areas will cease.” If this happens, then separate talks in Geneva aimed at finding a lasting political solution to the war may finally move forward.
The chances of this happening, however, are slim.
http://www.economist.com/news/middl.../n/n/Daily_Dispatch/email&etear=dailydispatch.