‘Russia must act objectively on Syria’

In its editorial, Dubai-based Al Bayan newspaper cast doubts on the success of the Syria ceasefire, raising a question: “Will the Syria ceasefire survive? It may be difficult to answer this question, but the reality suggests that the ceasefire deal needs a miracle to hold.” The paper said it regretted that the international community was deaf because it had not made sufficient efforts to stop this war and deter the Syrian regime and its allies from outrageous and brutal attacks against Syrian civilians. Syrian civilians are the ones who paid dearly during the six-year conflict. This struggle involving the regime forces, Hezbollah militias, extremist opposition groups and other parties is a very painful battle whose price was paid by civilians. The paper said the time has come for the international community to take serious action to save civilians in Syria and make every possible effort to spare them from being caught up in warfare.

Saudi Arabian newspaper Al Riyadh said in its editorial that the ceasefire deal is good in principal, but the bet will be on Moscow’s neutral stand during the talks between the Syrian regime and opposition groups. No doubt that the ceasefire reached by Russia with Turkey and Iran, in preparation for a new round of talks in the Kazakh capital Astana, is a good deal in principle. The ceasefire is very important to start a political process, which is expected to be long and complicated due to the vast divergence in positions between the Syrian government and the opposition, the paper said. In any talk, there must be a common ground that brings both sides to the negotiating table where they can start real negotiations that can yield positive results. Therefore, the bet is on Russia, which must act objectively, to put an end to the six-year war that claimed hundreds of thousands lives and displaced millions of Syrians.

Qatari newspaper Al Raya sees that Russia’s announcement of the ceasefire puts it before a difficult test that will determine its sincere wish and seriousness to support peace efforts in Syria. The newspaper stressed the importance of developing a common vision by the national Syrian forces within the opposition to find a way out of this current political crisis. The ceasefire will undoubtedly contribute to alleviating the suffering of the brotherly Syrian people. Although it welcomed the ceasefire agreement, the newspaper highlighted the need of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s regime to abide by it, until it reaps its fruits. It referred to several ceasefires and truces in the past that were aborted by the regime.

Jordan’s Addustour newspaper said the ceasefire deal was a turning point in the Syrian political landscape. The repercussions and tremors that struck the surrounding areas of Syria clearly indicated the need to stop the madness of war and the bloody fighting that has affected all Arab people. It seems that solutions are developed according to equations and international consensus is being passed through chaos that has ripped the Arab region and its people. Therefore, it is necessary for the different parties to prepare well for the talks in Astana to arrive at a comprehensive settlement that leads to an end to the six-year bloody fighting, the paper added.