Partial Syria ceasefire agreed at Munich talks

A cessation of hostilities is to come into force in Syria within a week and humanitarian aid is to be delivered to besieged areas across the country in the next few days, the US, Russia and other powers said late on Thursday night at talks in Munich. There was no clear commitment to end Russian airstrikes, however. Galvanised by mounting international concern over the war, John Kerry, the US secretary of state, said progress had been made towards implementing a nationwide “cessation of hostilities”, although it was not clear how this could happen unless Russia stops bombing civilians and mainstream rebels who are fighting the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad. Action against Islamic State would continue.

Western diplomats confirmed that there had been no agreement by Moscow to immediately end airstrikes – a key demand of the Syrian opposition, who are likely to be highly sceptical about the results of the talks.

Kerry said a UN taskforce would “work to develop the modalities for a long term and durable cessation of violence”.

Speaking after lengthy talks that included Russia and more than a dozen other countries, Kerry said that all involved agreed that Syrian peace negotiations should resume in Geneva as soon as possible.

Kerry, flanked by the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and UN envoy Staffan de Mistura, acknowledged that the Munich meeting produced commitments on paper only. He and Lavrov agreed that the “real test” would be whether all parties to the Syrian conflict honoured those commitments.

Germany’s foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said: “We will only be able to see whether this was a breakthrough in a few days.”

Kerry told reporters the ceasefire would not apply to extremist groups including Isis and the al-Nusra Front. He said: “We are doing everything in our power diplomatically to bring an end to this conflict. This is still a complicated conflict, with increasing levels of violence and increasing levels of terrorists.”

Syria’s main opposition group welcomed the plan, spokesman Salim al-Muslat told reporters. He cautioned, however, that the agreement must show effects before his group would join political talks with government representatives in Switzerland.

“If we see action and implementation, we will see you very soon in Geneva,” he said.