The suffering in Syria is heart-breaking, with the images of bloodied children being dug out of the rubble in the hell-hole of Aleppo putting our own petty worries into perspective. The situation there is a stain on our collective conscience as it represents a massive failure of the international community.
The recent ceasefire brokered by the US and Russia did offer a rare glimmer of hope but this was shattered when the truce collapsed – unsurprisingly – a few days later. Russia and the Syrian government have since intensified their airstikes against civilians in the besieged city and led to Washington suspending talks with Moscow over Syria.
Aleppo has come to symbolise the intense pain of the Syrian people. How can anybody justify the deliberate bombing of hospitals and civilians as well as the use of incendiary and cluster munitions? It is not surprising that Pope Francis has said that those responsible for such heinous acts will be answerable to God.
This is a hugely complex war, made so complicated by the many foreign interests involved. President Bashar al-Assad is backed by Russia, Iran and Hizbollah. Some of the moderate rebel groups are backed by the US, Turkey and the Gulf States. One of the main moderate groups, the Syrian Kurdish YPG, has been targeted by Turkey. Then there is the so-called Islamic State, which has committed horrendous acts of genocide.
Another complication is the existence of the Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, previously known as al-Nusra, which used to be an al-Qaeda offshoot but which has now severed all ties with the jihadist group. Al-Sham has proved to be one of the most effective Islamist groups fighting Assad’s army and many of the moderate rebel groups have felt forced to team up with them after suffering heavy losses. In fact, Russia has blamed the collapse of the ceasefire on the fact that the US did not separate the al-Sham from more moderate rebels, as they had agreed to do under the terms of the truce deal.
Perhaps, however, it is Russia’s policy to drive the moderate rebels into the hands of the more extreme Islamists and then use this as an excuse to carry on bombing Aleppo, which according to UN Syria envoy Steffan de Mistura may face “total destruction” in two months, with thousands more killed. The situation in Aleppo is so dire that Mr Mistura told the media that he was prepared to personally accompany al-Sham jihadists out of the city if it would stop the fighting.
While the whole international community must assume responsibility for the carnage in Syria, Russia has a lot to answer for, as it is the only country with any real clout over the regime in Damascus. Instead of convincing Assad to negotiate a political solution it has chosen to blindly support – and participate in – a military solution.
Furthermore, the recent confirmation by the UN that the deadly attack on an aid convoy outside Aleppo last month was an air strike – and the US believes Russian warplanes were responsible – means that Moscow has a lot of explaining to do.
The international community, especially the EU, must exert pressure on Moscow to play a constructive role in ending this war. Russia must declare a suspension of its military strikes in Syria and convince Damascus to do the same, and this should be followed by the US resuming direct talks with Russia on ending the war, jointly targeting jihadist groups and discussing a political transition in Syria.
The deepening rift between the US and Russia over Syria is bad for international peace and stability and has already affected other areas of co-operation between the two countries. President Vladimir Putin has now suspended a 2000 agreement with the US on the disposal of surplus nuclear weapons-grade plutonium. This trend should not be allowed to continue. What other measures will Moscow take next?