Syrian side ready to guarantee safe passage to aid convoys — Russian Defense Ministry

MOSCOW, September 12 /TASS/. The Syrian side is ready to ensure the safe passage of aid convoys bound for Aleppo through the government-controlled territories while the pro-government troops are ready to move away from the Castello road near Aleppo, Sergey Kapitsyn, the commander of the operations group deployed on the road and a representative of the Russian reconciliation center, said on Monday.

"The Syrian side is ready to ensure the safe passage of humanitarian, commercial and civil transport through the territory held by the Syrian government troops with assistance from the Syrian Red Crescent Society and the United Nations Monitoring Mission," Kapitsyn said.

The center’s representative clarified that the road connecting Aleppo’s eastern and western outskirts is under the control of government troops and people’s militia units.

"The pro-government forces are ready to withdraw their troops from the Castello road to distances defined by the Russian-American agreements but the move should be synchronized with moderate opposition," Kapitsyn said.

He recalled that for the moment the Castello road was a corridor, which the militants who decided to lay down arms and end the hostilities, could use to leave the eastern outskirt of Aleppo.

Under the Russia -U.S. agreement on resumption of the cessation of hostilities regime in Syria reached on September 9 this year, the sides will pay great attention to the Castello road, which will be the main route for delivering relief cargoes into Aleppo. The Syrian Red Crescent society is setting up and equipping a checkpoint on the Castello road that will inspect all the humanitarian convoys heading for the eastern and western parts of the city," Kapitsyn stressed adding that trucks were already delivering aid into western Aleppo.

Syrian side notified of Russia-US agreements

Chief of Russian center for reconciliation of the warring parties in Syria Vladimir Savchenko said earlier on Monday that the Syrian side has been informed about all provisions of the Russia-U.S. agreements on the stabilization.

"The Syrian side has been informed about provisions of the agreements and we have received it consent for their strict observance," he said.

He said officers of the Russian reconciliation center who maintain direct contact with Syrian army units "have reported the Syrian government troops’ readiness to resume the regime of cessation of hostilities."

"Key tasks for the reconciliation center in the period of introduction of the ceasefire regime are to ensure humanitarian deliveries, first of all to western and eastern districts of the city of Aleppo, to enliven work with the United Nations on the establishment of a mechanism for monitoring and check of humanitarian cargoes, on the establishment of a system of control over ceasefire observance, on the establishment of mechanisms for restoration of the vital infrastructure in Aleppo and in the country in general and to involve Russia and international organizations to humanitarian operations in Syria," Savchenko said.

Five countries, five international organizations ready to supply aid

According to Savchenko, five countries and five international organizations have expressed readiness to provide humanitarian aid to the people of Syria.

"Five countries and five international organizations have so far expressed readiness to provide humanitarian assistance to the Syrian people", he said.

"I would like to point out that the US has not yet given us information that can help determine the areas and facilities controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra (outlawed in Russia) in the active combat zones. This fact negatively affects the work for reconciliation of the conflicting sides", Savchenko added.