Headlines have been declaring a ceasefire in Syria’s conflict. Announced by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov late on Feb. 11, it was greeted as a ray of hope in the floundering efforts to end this seemingly intractable conflict.
What it isn’t, is a ceasefire. The International Syria Support Group (ISSG)—a coalition of 17 nations, among them Russia and the United States, the Arab League, the European Union, and the U.N.—has not in fact used that term, preferring a “cessation of hostilities.” And it isn’t even that: it’s a proposal for a cessation of hostilities, one that will supposedly start soon, but only after a working group has met with representatives of countries supporting the Assad regime and those backing Syria’s opposition.
Nor is it a viable proposal. Instead, it’s best seen as political cover. It covers Kerry, in his remarkably zealous quest to secure the start of a resolution by the end of March, and Russia, in its mission to prop up the Assad regime by bombing the rebels and civilian areas in concert with both Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Iran.
