Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 24
By Anakhanum Khidayatova - Trend:
Syria's ceasefire agreement offered by Russia and the US smells of a "Minsk" type agreement, Michael Jabara Carley, professor at the University of Montreal, said.
He said that the agreement will hardly to bring any significant results.
The expert added that the agreement is intended to split off some of the people fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government.
"I do not know why the Russian government agreed to this agreement, except as some kind of con job to finesse the US into changing its policies toward the Syrian government," he said.
"The US has not changed its policy and still backs so called moderate Jihadists," the expert said.
The US Department of State issued a joint statement made by the US, Russia and other countries of the International Syria Support Group Feb. 22. According to the statement, a truce between the forces of the Syrian government and the armed opposition groups must be reached from February 27. But it will not be applied to the IS, Jabhat al-Nusra and other groups recognized by the UN as terrorist groups.
The professor also expressed doubts that the Russian policy can somehow change the situation in Syria.
He said that this puts Turkey and Saudi Arabia temporarily in an awkward position, but they will continue fighting against President Assad.
The professor said that the Syrian war is a long way from over.
Commenting on the upcoming parliamentary election in Syria, the professor assumed that if President Assad said there will be elections, there will be elections.
"But for now the only issue that really counts is the war and who wins it," he said. "The rest is purely decorative."
Syria has been suffering from an armed conflict since March 2011, which, according to the UN, has so far claimed the lives of over 220,000 people. Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops. The "Islamic State" and Jabhat al-Nusra are the most active terrorist groups in Syria.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has set the parliamentary election in the country for April 13.