Some members of the UN Security Council called Wednesday for a humanitarian pause in the Syria conflict, saying that the escalation in fighting by the Syrian government with Russian backing is hindering peace talks set to resume this month.
The council met to discuss the humanitarian situation in and around Aleppo, where the Syrian government backed by Russian airstrikes began an offensive against rebels more than one week ago, resulting in the disruption of peace talks in Geneva.
Spain and New Zealand, who lead the Security Council's efforts on the humanitarian situation in Syria, said that while the council has tried to keep the humanitarian and the political situations separate, the two are interconnected.
"The war on the ground is having a direct impact on the political talks and, therefore, on the humanitarian situation," said Gerard van Bohemen, New Zealand's ambassador to the United Nations.
"We ask that serious consideration be given to a humanitarian pause to enable assistance to go through."
Van Bohemen noted that Russian airstrikes "have been a direct cause of the crisis around Aleppo," where some 30,000 refugees fleeing the government offensive have been trapped at the Turkish border and up to 300,000 people living in a rebel-held area might be cut off from aid.
Britain and France have called on Russia to stop airstrikes and allow humanitarian aid to reach people in need, which the two countries see as obligations set out under a Security Council resolution on a roadmap to end the crisis.
"I hope there is going to be a proper response from Russia to concerns that we have and that everyone else has about whether they are really fulfilling their obligations," said Matthew Rycroft, British ambassador to the UN.
Francois Delattre, French ambassador to the UN, said the pause was "not a favour that we're asking from the Syrian government and its allies - it's their obligation."
Russia rejected calls to halt its air campaign in Syria, saying some members of the Security Council were using the humanitarian issue to influence political negotiations.
"We are not about to be apologetic about what we're doing - we're acting in a very transparent manner," said Vitaly Churkin, Russian ambassador to the UN.
Russia is set to present new proposals for a ceasefire at a meeting of the International Syria Support Group on Thursday in Munich.
Churkin noted that Moscow was "prepared to contemplate all reasonable proposals" for a ceasefire. He warned that "simply to announce a humanitarian pause in a situation where there is a lot of fighting including by terrorist organizations and various other radical organizations ... is unrealistic."
By Emoke Bebiak
