"The United States could not even fulfill their obligations under the US-Russian agreements," Russian Defense Ministry Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said. "Russia has not received any maps, objects' coordinates or any other intel on any terrorist organization in Syria, from Daesh to al-Nusra."
Commenting on US State Department spokesperson John Kirby's statement about the humanitarian pause in Syria, Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said that it underlines the difference between Russia's and the US' understanding of the pause's use.
State Department spokesperson Kirby said Friday that the US considered that civilians in Aleppo do not benefit from humanitarian pauses introduced by Russia.
"Such statements show that Moscow and the State Department have a different understanding of the 'use' of the humanitarian pauses," Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said.
He stressed that for Russia humanitarian pauses were a possibility to deliver aid to people in areas ravaged by fighting.
"Throughout the whole anti-terrorist operation in Syria we are paying a special attention to the warring sides' reconciliation and delivery of humanitarian aid to the Syrians," Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said.
"In the last few months alone, [Russia] delivered more than 100 tons of the most necessary cargos to Aleppo — food, medicine and necessities. All the civilians of Aleppo received this aid, without any limits for the Western and Eastern parts. During this time, the State Department did not deliver a single breadcrumb to the Syrians it supposedly cares so much about," Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov concluded.
Syria’s war between government forces and a wide range of insurgents, including opposition groups and terrorists, such as Islamic State and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (formerly known as the Nusra Front), outlawed in Russia, has raged for some five years and has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.
On September 9, Russia and the United States reached an agreement for a peace process in Syria. A ceasefire stipulated by the deal entered into force on September 12, but while it was supposed to last at least seven days for the next steps to be taken toward the Syrian settlement, it soon disintegrated.
SPUTNIK/MNA