Can Russia And The U.S. Bring Peace To Syria?

Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and US secretary of state John Kerry. Photograph: Alexander Shcherbak/TASS

Japan Times/AFP-JIJI, Reuters: U.S., Russia pull the strings as Syria war enters sixth year (Analysis)

The United States and Russia are pulling the strings in Syria’s five-year war, experts say, pressuring opposing sides and leveraging rival regional powers to reach a settlement.

As the conflict enters its sixth year, the embattled regime and fractured opposition are in Geneva for indirect peace talks hosted by United Nations peace envoy Staffan de Mistura.

The opposition are holding out little hope that Geneva will bring them nearer to their goal of toppling Assad. Announcing its decision to attend the Geneva talks, the main opposition umbrella group said the government was preparing for more war.

Rebels say they are ready to fight on despite their recent defeats. They hope foreign backers — notably Saudi Arabia — will send them more powerful weapons, including anti-aircraft missiles if the political process collapses.

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Update: Russia and the US now have the power to impose peace in Syria (Charles Glass, The Guardian).

WNU Editor: On the military front there are a lot of promises that both Russia and the U.S. that they will work together .... Russia ready to cooperate with U.S.-led coalition in fight for Syria's Raqqa: Interfax (Reuters) .... but on the peace process itself, huge differences .... Few Signs of Compromise as Syria War Talks Resume Amid Truce (Bloomberg). And if these talks fail, the UN assessment is blunt .... U.N. aims for Syria talks to produce roadmap, no 'Plan B' but war (Reuters).