Syrian President Bashar Assad can retain the highest state post with the generous permission of the White House. Such a point is contained in the new plan for the settlement of the situation in the Middle Eastern republic, developed by the administration of the President of the United States.
According to the new plan, reported by The Daily Beast with reference to sources in the White House and Congress, Washington gives its consent to Assad to remain the president of Syria. In addition, the US authorities support the program of creating buffer "security zones" in the country and do not object that representatives of the Russian armed forces patrol the Syrian territories. Thus, Americans are trying to strengthen cooperation with Russia on Syria.
On such concessions the Americans are ready to go with only one goal: to consolidate the efforts of all the parties participating in the Syrian conflict for the complete and final defeat of the terrorist group "Islamic State". The Islamists, by common efforts, are being squeezed out of their positions, but at any moment they are ready to seize the initiative. Americans on the bitter experience of Iraq know that if the territory is not kept in large forces, the enemy will soon return there. US cooperation with Russia should prevent this.
At the same time, the Americans beaten off from the militants do not want to transfer control of the forces of Bashar Assad. Territories will go to opposition groups that are supported from Washington.
It is expected that Washington will voice its new proposals on the Syrian settlement at a meeting with the Russian delegation to be held at the G20 summit in Hamburg. The talks will be attended by the presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, as well as heads of foreign affairs agencies of the two countries, Sergei Lavrov and Rex Tillerson.
In April, after reports of a chemical attack by government troops in the position of the rebels, the American leadership categorically stated that Assad should leave the post of president. However, in order to strengthen interaction with Russia, Washington agreed to soften its position.
On the eve of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that the US is ready to consider the possibility of creating joint with Russia no-fly zones in Syria and other mechanisms to ensure stability. Among them, he called the ground observers for compliance with the ceasefire agreement, as well as coordination of actions to deliver humanitarian aid. Cooperation with Russia "in order to ensure stability on the ground will initiate progress on the settlement of the political future of Syria," said the head of the State Department.
The administration of the White House expects that Russia will accept US proposals. The attacks of the US armed forces on the Syrian military base and the downed Syrian fighter must demonstrate to Moscow that otherwise Washington is ready to start a full-scale war against Assad.
However, the Trump-Tillerson plan may run into resistance within the United States itself. "We are ready to explore the many options for ensuring stability in Syria. However, I do not want to get ahead of negotiations with the Russians, "the press secretary of the National Security Council.
The theme of the Syrian settlement should become one of the main issues of the first meeting of Vladimir Putin with the new American leader. This is said in the Kremlin and in the White House. Therefore, it is not surprising that the Syrian plan was prepared precisely for the meeting in Hamburg, otherwise it would not have turned out to be a substantive conversation.
As previously reported, the presidents of Russia and the US will meet on the morning of Friday, July 7. The heads of the two states will participate in the meeting of the leaders of the "Group of Twenty", which will precede the first official meeting of the summit. Later on the same day, Putin and Trump will have a separate full meeting.