Russia announced it would support a ceasefire of 48-hours in the city of Aleppo. The announcement by Moscow came on the 18th of August after UN Special Envoy to Syria called on all parties to implement such a truce that he defined as vital to humanitarian demands in the embattled city. Meanwhile, the United Nations announced it is ready to deliver aid into Aleppo, but needs commitments from all parties in the war – not just Russia – to abide by a 48-hour humanitarian ceasefire.
“So I welcome the announcement by the Russian Federation on 18 August to support the call for a 48-hour ceasefire. We are clear that anything shorter would not allow us to respond meaningfully to the size of the need we are facing, either in Eastern or Western Aleppo today. While this statement is positive, this cannot be a one-sided offer. I have consistently said that any pause also needed to include the clear security assurances from all parties to the conflict,” said Stephen O’Brein, UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned last week of an unprecedented “humanitarian catastrophe” in Aleppo and urged Russia and the United States to quickly reach a deal on a ceasefire in the city and elsewhere in the country. Since the beginning of the war in Syria, more than half a million people were killed and some 11 million people were misplaced.