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Memorandum on Stabilisation of the Situation in the Idlib De-escalation Area

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Country/entity
Russia
Syria
Turkey
Region
Cross-regional
Agreement name
Memorandum on Stabilisation of the Situation in the Idlib De-escalation Area
Date
17/09/2018
Agreement status
Multiparty signed/agreed
Interim arrangement
No
Agreement/conflict level
Interstate/intrastate conflict(s) (Syrian Conflicts (1948 - ) (1976 - 2005) (2011 - )
The agreements relate to three different conflict contexts. Israel-Syria and Syria-Lebanon. The Syrian-Israeli conflict was a key factor for the Syrian intervention during the Lebanese Civil War, with Syrian-backed Palestinian Liberation Army units intervened in 1976 against the Palestinian/Leftist militias. Following a massacre at Tel al-Zaatar that year, Syria was forced to accept a ceasefire at a meeting of the Arab League. However, the Arab League also mandated an Arab Deterrence Force, consisting of mostly Syrian soldiers with token contributions from other Arab League states, thus further legitimizing the Syrian presence in Lebanon. During a second bout of fighting that began in 1989, caused by the formation of rival Lebanese regimes in East and West Beirut, the Syrian-backed regime won and in 1991 the ‘Treaty of Brotherhood, Cooperation and Coordination’ was signed to legalize the Syrian occupation as a means to ensure the security of Syria. Syrian forces were forced to withdraw in 2005 following possible involvement in the assassination of Lebanon’s President Hariri.

Syria-internal. In 2011, domestic upheaval following a wave of protests across the Arab World soon led to violent repression of protestors by Syrian government troops. The violence progressed steadily and by July 2011 the Free Syrian Army (FSA) was formed consisting of defected military units and new recruits. The FSA and rebel umbrella group known as the Syrian National Council represented the first attempt at coordinating rebel factions in late 2011. However, a steady influx of foreign fighters and increased sectarianism radicalised opposition groups, which relied on foreign funding. The nature of the conflict changed drastically in late 2013 as infighting among the opposition groups increased. One of the more significant developments was the split between the al-Qaeda outfits the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, ISIS), and Jabhat al-Nusra in early 2014 in addition to the intensified targeting of other rebel factions by ISIS fighters in particular, including the Kurdish Peshmerga, the FSA and other jihadist outfits. Since the summer of 2014, the conflict was further internationalized when ISIS announced the formation of an Islamic state eroding the state line between Iraq and Syria and also in mid-2015 when Russian forces intervened on behalf of the Bashar al-Assad government in Damascus.

Syrian Conflicts (1948 - ) (1976 - 2005) (2011 - ) )
Stage
Implementation/renegotiation (Implementation modalities)
Conflict nature
Government
Peace process
115: Syrian peace process
Parties
Republic of Turkey;
Russian Federation
Third parties
Description
Agreement document
SY_180917_Memorandum on Stabilisation of the Situation in the Idlib De-escalation Area_EN.pdf []

Groups

Children/youth
No specific mention.
Disabled persons
No specific mention.
Elderly/age
No specific mention.
Migrant workers
No specific mention.
Racial/ethnic/national group
No specific mention.
Religious groups
No specific mention.
Indigenous people
No specific mention.
Other groups
No specific mention.
Refugees/displaced persons
No specific mention.
Social class
No specific mention.

Gender

Women, girls and gender
No specific mention.
Men and boys
No specific mention.
LGBTI
No specific mention.
Family
No specific mention.

State definition

State definition
No specific mention.

Governance

Political institutions (new or reformed)
No specific mention.
Constitution's affirmation/renewal
No specific mention.
Constitutional reform/making
No specific mention.
Elections
No specific mention.
Electoral commission
No specific mention.
Political parties reform
No specific mention.
Civil society
No specific mention.
Traditional/religious leaders
No specific mention.
Public administration
No specific mention.

Power sharing

Political power sharing
No specific mention.
Territorial power sharing
No specific mention.
Economic power sharing
No specific mention.
Military power sharing
No specific mention.

Human rights and equality

Human rights/RoL
No specific mention.
Equality
No specific mention.
Democracy
No specific mention.
Protection measures
No specific mention.
Human rights framework
No specific mention.
Civil and political rights
No specific mention.
Socio-economic rights
No specific mention.
NHRI
No specific mention.
Regional or international human rights institutions
No specific mention.
Mobility/access
Page 1, 7. Turkish Armed Forces and the military police of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation will conduct coordinated patrols and monitoring with UAVs along the boundaries of the demilitarized zone.
With a view to ensuring free movement of local residents and goods and restoring trade and economic relations.

Page 1, 8. Transit traffic on the routes M4 (Aleppo-Latakia) and M5 (Aleppo-Hama) will be restored by the end of 2018.
Detention procedures
No specific mention.
Media and communication
No specific mention.
Citizenship
No specific mention.

Justice sector reform

Criminal justice and emergency law
No specific mention.
State of emergency provisions
No specific mention.
Judiciary and courts
No specific mention.
Prisons and detention
No specific mention.
Traditional Laws
No specific mention.

Socio-economic reconstruction

Development or socio-economic reconstruction
No specific mention.
National economic plan
No specific mention.
Natural resources
No specific mention.
International funds
No specific mention.
Business
No specific mention.
Taxation
No specific mention.
Banks
No specific mention.

Land, property and environment

Land reform/rights
No specific mention.
Pastoralist/nomadism rights
No specific mention.
Cultural heritage
No specific mention.
Environment
No specific mention.
Water or riparian rights or access
No specific mention.

Security sector

Security Guarantees
No specific mention.
Ceasefire
Ceasefire provision
Page 1, 1. The Idlib de-escalation area will be preserved and Turkish observation posts will be fortified and continue to function.

Page 1, 2. The Russian Federation will take all necessary measures to ensure that military operations and attacks on Idlib will be avoided and the existing status quo will be maintained.

Page 1, 9. Effective measures will be taken for ensuring sustainable ceasefire regime within the Idlib de-escalation area. In this regard, the functions of the Joint Iranian-Russian-Turkish Coordination Center will be enhanced.
General commitments
Page 1, 3. A demilitarized zone, 15-20 kms deep in the de-escalation area will be established.

Page 1, 4. The delineation of exact lines of the demilitarised zone will be determined through further consultations.

Page 1, 5. All radical terrorist groups will be removed from the demilitarized zone by October 15.

Page 1, 6. All tanks, MLRS, artillery and mortars belonging to conflicting parties will be withdrawn from the demilitarized zone by October 10, 2018.
Police
No specific mention.
Armed forces
No specific mention.
DDR
Demilitarisation provisions
Page 1, 3. A demilitarized zone, 15-20 kms deep in the de-escalation area will be established.

Page 1, 4. The delineation of exact lines of the demilitarised zone will be determined through further consultations.

Page 1, 5. All radical terrorist groups will be removed from the demilitarized zone by October 15.

Page 1, 6. All tanks, MLRS, artillery and mortars belonging to conflicting parties will be withdrawn from the demilitarized zone by October 10, 2018.

Page 1, 7. Turkish Armed Forces and the military police of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation will conduct coordinated patrols and monitoring with UAVs along the boundaries of the demilitarized zone.
With a view to ensuring free movement of local residents and goods and restoring trade and economic relations.



Page 1, 9. Effective measures will be taken for ensuring sustainable ceasefire regime within the Idlib de-escalation area. In this regard, the functions of the Joint Iranian-Russian-Turkish Coordination Center will be enhanced.
Intelligence services
No specific mention.
Parastatal/rebel and opposition group forces
No specific mention.
Withdrawal of foreign forces
No specific mention.
Corruption
No specific mention.
Crime/organised crime
No specific mention.
Drugs
No specific mention.
Terrorism
Page 1, 5. All radical terrorist groups will be removed from the demilitarized zone by October 15.

Page 1, 10. The two sides reiterated their determination to combat terrorism in Syria in all forms and manifestations.

Transitional justice

Transitional justice general
No specific mention.
Amnesty/pardon
No specific mention.
Courts
No specific mention.
Mechanism
No specific mention.
Prisoner release
No specific mention.
Vetting
No specific mention.
Victims
No specific mention.
Missing persons
No specific mention.
Reparations
No specific mention.
Reconciliation
No specific mention.

Implementation

UN signatory
No specific mention.
Other international signatory
No specific mention.
Referendum for agreement
No specific mention.
International mission/force/similar
Page 1, 7. Turkish Armed Forces and the military police of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation will conduct coordinated patrols and monitoring with UAVs along the boundaries of the demilitarized zone.
With a view to ensuring free movement of local residents and goods and restoring trade and economic relations.

Page 1, 1. The Idlib de-escalation area will be preserved and Turkish observation posts will be fortified and continue to function.

Page 1, 2. The Russian Federation will take all necessary measures to ensure that military operations and attacks on Idlib will be avoided and the existing status quo will be maintained.

Page 1, 9. Effective measures will be taken for ensuring sustainable ceasefire regime within the Idlib de-escalation area. In this regard, the functions of the Joint Iranian-Russian-Turkish Coordination Center will be enhanced.
Enforcement mechanism
No specific mention.

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