Syrian Opposition Bloc Shares Russian View on UN-Backed Transition Plan

Moderate Syrian opposition bloc Syria's Tomorrow shares Russia's view on transition process based on the UN road map, the bloc's spokesman Monzer Akbik told Sputnik on Monday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held talks with Ahmad Jarba, chief of Syria's Tomorrow which was established in March as an umbrella organization for Syrian liberal opposition groups.

"There is right understanding between the bloc Tomorrow, the Russian Foreign Ministry and the Russian government on the framework of political process in Syria," Akbik said after Jarba met with Lavrov.

According to Akbik, the framework of the Syrian peace process is the UN road map providing that the parties will form a transitional government, draft a new constitution and hold free and fair elections monitored by the United Nations in 18 months.

Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with numerous opposition factions and Islamic extremist groups fighting government forces, seeking to topple the government of President Bashar Assad.

A ceasefire deal for Syria was worked out by Russia and the United States and took effect on February 27. The cessation of hostilities does not apply to terrorist organizations, such as Islamic State (Daesh) and al-Nusra Front, both of which are outlawed in many countries including Russia and the United States.