MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russia will be providing assistance to Syrian armed groups that have chosen to fight against the Nusra Front in the Idlib de-escalation zone, Lavrov said Wednesday.
"We have information that the armed formations which have joined the arrangement on the Idlib de-escalation zone have started to fight more actively against Jabhat al-Nusra. We will be assisting them in this matter, as well as, of course, assisting the Syrian army," Lavrov told reporters after a meeting of Russian special services chiefs in Krasnodar which was televised by RT.
"We have not seen the [US-led] coalition take serious action against Jabhat al-Nusra, which changed its name, but did not change the essence," Lavrov added.
During a September round of Astana talks, Russia, Iran and Turkey, the three states that serve as guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire, agreed on all four de-escalation zones in Syria. The sides also reached agreement on rules of operation in buffer zones and at checkpoints and observation posts, as well as rules of engagement for units of the de-escalation control force.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, to date, the number of armed groups which have vowed to conform to the ceasefire in Syria is standing at 234, while 2,241 cities, towns and villages across Syria have signed the reconciliation agreement.
