MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Establishment of ceasefire and stability zones across Syria will create conditions for political settlement of the conflict, US State Secretary Rex Tillerson said Sunday.
"Once we can eliminate the battle against ISIS [Islamic State, outlawed in Russia], conclude that and it is going quite well, then we hope to turn our attention to ceasefire agreements between the regime and opposition forces. In that regard, we are hopeful that we can work with Russia and use their influence to achieve areas of stabilization throughout Syria and create the conditions for a political process through Geneva in which we can engage all of the parties on the way forward," Tillerson told the ABC broadcaster.
The first US priority in Syria is to defeat the Daesh terror group, outlawed in Russia, according to Tillerson.
“It’s important that we keep our priority straight and we believe that the first priority is the defeat of ISIS. By defeating ISIS and removing their caliphate from their control, we’ve now eliminated at least or minimized a particular threat not just to the United States, but to the whole stability in the region,” Tillerson said.
“Clearly, that requires the participation of the regime with the support of their allies and we’re hopeful that Russia will choose to play a constructive role in supporting ceasefires through their own Astana talks, but also, ultimately, through Geneva,” Tillerson added.
The statement was made amid the escalation of the situation in Syria after the chemical weapons incident in the Syrian province of Idlib and US missile strike against the Syrian military airfield in Ash Sha’irat, which was a response to the alleged chemical attack, according to US President Donald Trump.
