Turkey did its utmost to help establish a ceasefire on December 30, 2016 with a view to ending nationwide hostilities, identifying ceasefire violations and preventing their recurrence.

A bilateral ceasefire monitoring mechanism was established with Russia to identify ceasefire violations and to prevent further cases by those responsible for violations. The information compiled by this mechanism has been shared with the UN and International Syria Support Group countries.

In line with the steps taken to strengthen the ceasefire in Astana meetings, most recently Iran made a declaration at the Astana meeting of March 14-15 announcing that Iran has become another guarantor of the ceasefire agreement.

With respect to the ceasefire mechanism and efforts to strengthen it, we have assumed the responsibility of encouraging the opposition groups on the ground which commit to the ceasefire agreement to comply with it while Russia and Iran have assumed the responsibility of ensuring that the Syrian regime and its supporters fulfill their obligations emerging from the ceasefire agreement.

Following the chemical attack perpetrated by the Syrian regime’s aircraft in Idlib/Khan Sheikhun, we immediately contacted the Embassies of Russia and Iran in Ankara and brought to the attention of our interlocutors that this heinous attack constitutes a grave violation of the ceasefire regulation while reminding the responsibilities of the two guarantor states on warning the perpetrator of the said attack, which creates a highly risky situation regarding the efficiency and continuation of the ceasefire, and on preventing the recurrence of similar violations.