Moscow, Ankara reach deal on Syria cease-fire excluding terror groups

Just hours before US Secretary of State John Kerry's speech on his country's Middle East policy, Russia and Turkey announced Wednesday that they had reached an agreement without the US on a general cease-fire in Syria that will go into effect at midnight. In other words, while Kerry only speaks, Moscow and Ankara are taking action on the ground.
The two governments said the truce would not apply to terrorist organizations, without specifying them. Russia and Turkey added that they consider themselves as the guarantors of both the cease-fire and the peace process underway in Syria. The agreement is to be voted upon at a peace conference this week by Russia, Turkey, Iran, Syria, and representatives of Syrian rebel groups in the Kazakh capital Astana. The US and European countries are not participating in the conference.