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Assad assures Putin of ‘readiness’ to respect ceasefire

Wednesday, 24 February 2016 11:16 AM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 24 February 2016 11:15 AM ]

The combo photo shows Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (R) and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has assured his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of Damascus’ readiness to facilitate the establishment of a recently brokered ceasefire in the war-torn Arab country.

The Kremlin said that Putin discussed the issue with his Syrian counterpart in a telephone conversation on Wednesday.

Assad hailed the recent Russia-US statement on cessation of hostilities in Syria as an “important step toward political settlement” of the crisis in the Arab country, the Kremlin added.

The United States and Russia announced on Monday that they had reached a deal for a ceasefire in Syria which would begin on February 27. The Syrian government said the following day that it accepts the terms of the ceasefire deal on the basis that military efforts against terrorist Daesh and Nusra Front groups continue.

The Kremlin said that the two leaders also stressed the importance of the “continued and uncompromising” fight against terrorist groups, including, Daesh and al-Nusra Front.

Saudi King hails US-Russia proposal

The Kremlin said that Putin also held a telephone conversation with Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to present in detail the proposals contained in a joint US-Russian agreement on ceasefire in Syria.

The Kremlin said that King Salman welcomed the proposal, expressing the kingdom’s readiness to help make it work.

“The King of Saudi Arabia welcomed the agreements reached and expressed his readiness to work jointly with Russia to make them work,” the Kremlin said.

Putin and King Salman agreed to continue contacts on this matter, it added.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has hailed the ceasefire deal as a “long-awaited signal of hope” in resolving the five-year-long crisis in Syria, urging all warring sides to abide by it.

Syria is in the midst of a deadly turmoil since March 2011.

More than 470,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions displaced in Syria over the past five years.

Saudi Arabia is among the regional countries wildly known as the major supporters of Daesh terror group.

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