Assad: Russian and Iranian Support Was the Main Reason for Recent Advances

The President of Syria emphasized the "essential role" of Russia and Iran in the recent advances of the Syrian army in certain areas of the country, stating he is willing to accept a ceasefire if "terrorists" do not exploit it for their benefit. Bashar al-Assad, in an interview with the Spanish newspaper "El País," said, "We are ready to stop military operations, but this depends on other important matters... including that the terrorists do not exploit it for their benefit." The Syrian central government predominantly uses the term "terrorist" for all its opposition groups. The Syrian civil war began nearly five years ago following a severe crackdown on mostly peaceful protests against Assad's government. Assad's opponents range from a wide spectrum of Islamist extremists to Western-backed rebels. In his latest interview, Assad stated that ignoring the conditions of a ceasefire would lead to "chaos." On February 15, he mentioned in a speech in Damascus that a ceasefire does not mean a halt in the use of weapons and that no one can create the necessary conditions for a ceasefire in a week. The proposed ceasefire goes back to an agreement by global and regional powers in Munich, Germany, to halt operations in early March. Assad's opponents announced on Sunday that they had agreed to a potential ceasefire in exchange for guarantees regarding the cessation of government attacks and its allies, ending the siege of opponents, and allowing aid to be distributed to various areas. On the other hand, Bashar al-Assad told "El País" that the ceasefire must guarantee that "other countries, especially Turkey, are prevented from sending more weapons and terrorists [to Syria] and that no further logistical support is provided to the opposition." Turkey, along with some other regional powers like Saudi Arabia, supports a group of Assad's opponents. Some global powers like the United States and France are also considered major supporters of Assad's opponents and provide support to some rebels in the battles against the group known as the Islamic State. However, there are differences among these countries regarding support for the rebels, participation in ground operations, or establishing a no-fly zone. On the other hand, Iran and Russia are considered the main supporters of Bashar al-Assad and support him in both ground battles and airstrikes. Assad has referred to the role of these two countries as the key "essential" factor in recent advances. Government forces and allied militias, with Russian air support, have recently succeeded in taking control of areas in Aleppo province. Bashar al-Assad stated, "We definitely needed that support. For a specific reason: because more than 80 countries support the terrorists in various ways." Barack Obama, the President of the United States, recently stated that he believes Syria will become a "quagmire" for Russia. He also emphasized that he does not have a competition with Vladimir Putin over Syria. The latest statistics from the United Nations regarding casualties in the Syrian civil war, dating back several months, indicate that at least 250,000 people have been killed. Some other non-governmental organizations estimate the death toll to be close to half a million.