US and Turkey have "divided" Syria

Washington and Ankara have reached "broad agreement" on the settlement of Syria, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced, RIA Novosti reports.

"We are focused on the opportunity that lies before us and the Syrian people. We aim to liberate the Syrian people from the shackles of Bashar Assad... In our discussions with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, we have reached broad agreement on our vision for the future of Syria," the Secretary of State said.

Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during talks with Blinken, stated that Ankara supports the territorial integrity and preservation of Syria's unitary structure.

Recall that on December 8, opposition representatives announced on air that Syria had come under their control. The country's Prime Minister, Mohammed Ghazi al-Jalali, announced that he and several ministers were staying in Syria and had already established contact with the leaders of the armed opposition.

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that Syrian President Bashar Assad, after negotiations with a number of participants in the conflict, has decided to resign and leave the country, ordering a process of peaceful transfer of power to begin, with Russia not participating in the negotiations.

Later it became known that Assad and his family had left for Moscow: Russia had granted them asylum. RIA Novosti, citing its Kremlin source, reported that Russian officials are in contact with representatives of the Syrian armed opposition, whose leaders have guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic institutions.