US secretary of state John Kerry warned President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday of “repercussions” if he does not stick to a ceasefire brokered by Russia and the United States and move forward with a pol
US secretary of state John Kerry warned President Bashar al-Assad on Tuesday of “repercussions” if he does not stick to a ceasefire brokered by Russia and the United States and move forward with a political transition aimed at ending Syria's war.
But Mr Kerry said he still hoped diplomatic efforts could restore a nationwide February 27 ceasefire to include Aleppo, which has felt the brunt of increased fighting in recent weeks.
“If Assad does not adhere to this, there will clearly be repercussions, and one of them may be the total destruction of the ceasefire and then go back to war,” Mr Kerry told reporters a day after emergency meetings in Geneva. “I don’t think Russia wants that. I don't think Assad is going to benefit from that. There may be even other repercussions being discussed,” he added.
It was unclear what Mr Kerry meant by repercussions. Obama administration officials previously warned of consequences for Mr Assad’s action in the country’s long-running civil war, but critics say Washington has failed to follow through with a more aggressive response.
On Wednesday, the talks to halt the violence shifted to Berlin. With the UN Security Council due to meet on the crisis later on Wednesday, diplomatic efforts to stem the violence shifted to Berlin, where German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier was to hold talks with UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura, Syria’s main Opposition leader Riad Hijab and France’s top diplomat Jean-Marc Ayrault.
Renewed fighting betw-een regime and rebel for-ces has centred on Syria’s second city Aleppo. Fierce clashes raged overnight on its outskirts after a major rebel offensive.
A coalition of Opposition groups fighting under the name “Fatah Halab” — or Aleppo Conquest — launched the assault on Mr Assad’s forces with a tunnel bomb on Tuesday.
Rebel fighters initially advanced from the western suburbs of the city into government-held districts but were pushed back by Wednesday morning, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said the fighting was “the most violent in Aleppo in over a year”.
Meanwhile, France will host talks next week with the Saudi, Qatari, Turkish and UAE foreign ministers on the breakdown in the Syrian peace process, government spokesman Stephane Le Foll said on Wednesday.
Other top diplomats from “countries that think negotiations should resume at all costs” may also attend the Monday meeting, Mr Le Foll said, without naming them.
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.
Mr Ayrault voiced concern over the “halt in the negotiating process” after the violence in Aleppo, where fighting continued overnight, Mr Le Foll said.
