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Friends,

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I just had a telephone conversation with President of the United States 

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of America Barack Obama.

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The phone call was initiated by the Russian side,

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but the interest was certainly mutual.

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During our conversation, we approved joint statements of Russia 

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and the US, as co-chairs of the ISSG,

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on the cessation of hostilities in Syria.

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Adoption of the statement was preceded by intensive work 

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by Russian and American experts.

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We also made use of the positive experience we accumulated over 

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the course of cooperation in eliminating chemical weapons in Syria.

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Our negotiators held several rounds of closed consultations.

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As a result, we were able to reach an important,

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specific result. It was agreed that the cessation of hostilities 

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in Syria commences at 00:00 (Damascus time)

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on February 27, 2016 on terms and conditions that are 

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a part of the Russian-American statement.

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The essence of these conditions is as follows: by 12:00 pm 

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on February 26, 2016, all parties warring in Syria must indicate 

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to the Russian Federation or our American partners their commitment 

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to the cessation of hostilities.

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Russian and American troops will jointly delineate the territories 

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where these groups are active.

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No military action will be taken against them by the Armed Forces 

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of the Syrian Arab Republic, Russian Armed Forces 

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and the US-led coalition.

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In turn, the opposition will cease all military action against 

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the Armed Forces of the Syrian Arab Republic and other 

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groups supporting them.

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ISIS, Jabhat Al-Nursa, and other terrorist organisations designated 

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by the United Nations Security Council,

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are excluded from the cessation of hostilities.

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Strikes against them will continue.

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It is fundamentally important that Russia and the US,

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as co-chairs of the ISSG, are prepared to launch effective mechanisms 

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to promote and monitor compliance with the ceasefire by both the Syrian 

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Government and the armed opposition groups.

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To achieve this goal, we will establish a communication hotline and,

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if necessary, a working group to exchange relevant information.

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Russia will conduct the necessary work with Damascus 

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and the legitimate Syrian leadership.

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We expect that the United States will do the same with regard to their 

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allies and the groups they support.

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I am sure that the joint actions agreed upon with the American side 

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will be enough to radically reverse the crisis situation in Syria.

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We are finally seeing a real chance to bring an end 

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to the long-standing bloodshed and violence.

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As a result, humanitarian access to all Syrian citizens 

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in need should be made easier.

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Most important is the creation of conditions for launching a long-term 

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political process through a broad inter-Syrian dialogue 

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in Geneva, under the auspices of the UN.

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Unfortunately, recent history has many examples where one-sided actions 

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not sanctioned by the UN, which favour short-term political 

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or opportunistic interests, have led to dramatic results.

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These examples are on everyone’s lips: Somalia, Iraq, Libya, Yemen.

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Against this background, Russian-American agreements on the cessation 

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of hostilities in Syria, and their joint implementation in coordination 

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with all nations participating in the International Syria Support 

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Group, can become an example of responsible actions the global 

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community takes against the threat of terrorism,

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which are based on international law and UN principles.

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I would like to hope that the Syrian leadership and all our partners 

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in the region and beyond will support the set of actions chosen 

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by representatives of Russia and the US.