Turkey welcomes pact on cessation of hostilities in Syria

ANKARA, Feb 22 (KUNA) -- Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus welcomed the agreement on cessation of hostilities in Syria announced on Monday by US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov - the co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) Ceasefire Taskforce.
The ceasefire, to come into force at midnight (Damascus time) on February 27, "is positive for us too," he said at a press conference following a cabinet meeting chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Kurtulmus, also government spokesman, voiced hope that all warring parties in Syria will adhere to the agreement and implement it fully.
He stressed the need of Russia halting all air attacks against civilian targets in Syria, and called on the international community to rescue the civilians injured or left stranded in besieged areas. (end) rs.gb