After five years of devastating civil war, the only chance to end the fighting is a ceasefire and a negotiated solution, federal government spokesperson Steffen Seibert has declared. On Monday negotiations resumed in Geneva in an effort to find a political solution to the conflict in Syria.
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Commenting on the negotiations that began in Geneva on Monday, federal government spokesperson Steffen Seibert said, "After five years of devastating civil war, and after the recent Russian military intervention, there is only one way forward to end the civil war in Syria, and that is a ceasefire followed by a negotiated solution for political transition." The basis must be the United Nations Security Council resolutions 2254 and 2268. The Syrian regime, Iran and other parties to the conflict must still accept these resolutions.
The German government sees Russia’s announcement that it will withdraw many of its military forces in Syria as a signal that points in the right direction.
On Monday this week talks headed by the UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura began in Geneva (Geneva III) with the aim of finding a political solution to end the conflict. Syria’s civil war is one of the worst conflicts of our time. More than 250,000 people have been killed, and more than ten million have been forced to flee their homes. Syria’s cities and cultural heritage have been reduced to rubble.
For more than two weeks the cessation of hostilities agreed in Munich one month ago between the parties to the conflict has held, by and large. The foreign affairs ministers of Germany, France and the United Kingdom, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Jean-Marc Ayrault and Philip Hammond, called for across-the-board compliance with the cessation of hostilities in Syria, along with the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini. When they met in Paris on 4 March, they praised progress made and called on all parties to comply in full with the cessation of hostilities.
According to Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier the ceasefire will only hold "if we make progress towards achieving a political solution to the conflict". It is an ambitious path involving the establishment of a transitional government, constitutional reform and elections – all within the space of 18 months. It is important that, parallel to this, concrete steps are taken to restore trust. The Federal Foreign Minister stressed the importance of releasing prisoners and further improving humanitarian access to besieged parts of the country.