The proposal came amid escalating violence in East Ghouta, a suburb of Damascus, which has seen a new wave of clashes between Syrian government forces and both rebel and Islamist factions, including Al-Nusra Front, currently known as Jabhat Fateh Al-Sham.

The UN Security Council was to vote on the document on Friday, but the 15-member body faced intense diplomatic negotiations, with the Russian delegation seeking amendments to the document. Moscow argued that the initial text was “utopian” as the US-led coalition in Syria does not provide any guarantees that militants controlling the area would observe the ceasefire.

The Russian side has also stressed that the real goal of the document was to pin the blame for the escalation of violence on the Syrian government and potentially prepare the ground for regime change.

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