The State Department admitted Monday that the cease-fire in Syria brokered by the U.S. and Russia is at risk of falling apart, given the absence of any sign that Russia is working with Syria’s government to stop the violence.
“If this keeps up, we may be looking at a complete breakdown of the cessation,” spokesman Mark Toner told reporters.
Toner said there was a marked “deterioration” of the cessation of hostilities agreement over the weekend. In response, Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with his Russian counterpart by phone Monday to demand that Russia uphold its end of the deal.
For the U.S., that means working with its ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad, to stop attacking Syrian rebel groups.
“What happened in Vienna last week was only words on paper, but where the rubber hits the road is their ability to influence the parties on the ground,” Toner said of the role the U.S. wants Russia to play in the deal reached in Austria.
“It’s incumbent on Russia and to a certain extent Iran to put that pressure on the [Syrian] regime, and we haven’t seen it,” Toner added. “We’re very concerned that we, frankly, if anything have seen an uptick in violence over the weekend.”
He said the U.S. side is “fully aware of the fragility of the cessation of hostilities,” but said the U.S. can’t be sure whether Russia is doing enough to implement the deal.
“A, whether Russia is applying the kind of pressure necessary, and B, whether the regime is even listening,” he said when asked what the U.S. still had questions about.
He said it became more clear over the weekend that Syria is trying to “gain tactical advantage” by attacking rebel groups. He said it’s “frankly barbaric” that Syria is attacking its own citizens.
“But we believe that that’s what they’re doing,” he said.
