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Failure of Syrian Ceasefire Could Spark 'Catastrophic' Regional War

© Sputnik / Ilya Pitalev / Go to the mediabankЖители Дамаска на улицах города в первый день перемирия
Жители Дамаска на улицах города в первый день перемирия - Sputnik International
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If the recently-negotiated ceasefire in Syria collapses, the negative consequences won't be limited to a resurgence of hostilities in the country, according to Syrian political commentator Husam Shhib; he believes the conflict would escalate into a larger-scale war in the region.

Damascus, Syria, (File) - Sputnik International
UN Chief's Spokesman Says First Day of Syrian Ceasefire Decreased Violence
If the recently-negotiated ceasefire in Syria collapses, the negative consequences won't be limited to a resurgence of hostilities in the country, according to Syrian political commentator Hussam Shoaib; he believes the conflict would escalate into a larger-scale war in the region.

In an interview with RIA Novosti, Syrian political commentator Hussam Shoaib warned that if the Syrian ceasefire breaks down, the Syrian conflict would unfold into a full-fledged war in the region.

The interview came several days after Russia and the United States managed to clinch an agreement on a ceasefire in Syria. The ceasefire, which doesn't apply to the government's ongoing fight with the terrorist groups Daesh and the Al-Nusra Front, took effect at midnight on Saturday Damascus time (22:00 GMT on Friday).

© AP Photo / SANA via APIn this photo released on Tuesday, Jan 12, 2016, by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian government troops and allied militiamen walk inside the key town of Salma in Latakia province, Syria
In this photo released on Tuesday, Jan 12, 2016, by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian government troops and allied militiamen walk inside the key town of Salma in Latakia province, Syria - Sputnik International
In this photo released on Tuesday, Jan 12, 2016, by the Syrian official news agency SANA, shows Syrian government troops and allied militiamen walk inside the key town of Salma in Latakia province, Syria

"If the ceasefire is broken, we may face a catastrophic war, which will cover the entire region," Shoaib said.

At the same time, he did not rule out that the implementation of the ceasefire succeeding, given that Russia and the United States for the first time had reached a common agreement on the conflict in Syria.

According to him, the US government will certainly try to adhere to the ceasefire deal because "they feel that Russia is the only chance for Washington to help justify the US's criminal policy in Syria that they committed in the past five years."

Shoaib pointed out that the implementation of the ceasefire will allow the armed opposition groups to lay down their weapons and begin peace talks with the Syrian government.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Damascus and the Syrian opposition groups had supported the ceasefire agreement on Syria, where an armed conflict has raged since 2011.

A Syrian flag on a truck with a machine gun of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) near the town of Mhin, Syria - Sputnik International
Syria Government Forces Set to Continue Fighting Terrorists Amid Ceasefire
On September 30, 2015, Russia launched its air campaign in Syria, with more than fifty Russian Air Force planes, including Su-24M, Su-25 and Su-34 jets, conducting precision airstrikes on Daesh and Al-Nusra Front targets in Syria at the behest of the country's President Bashar Assad.

The West has repeatedly accused Russian warplanes of targeting moderate opposition groups and civilian buildings rather than Daesh and Al-Nusra terrorists. Moscow denies the accusations, saying that the goal of its air campaign in Syria is to launch strikes on terrorist groups, not the country's civilian infrastructure.

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