Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov , asked at a security conference in Munich on Saturday to assess the chances of the cessation of hostilities deal succeeding , replied : " 49 percent . " Asked the same question , his German counterpart Frank - Walter Steinmeier put the odds at 51 percent . The complex , multi - sided civil war in Syria , raging since 2011 , has drawn in most regional and global powers , caused the world 's worst humanitarian emergency and attracted recruitspersonnel.startposition.nato Islamist militancy from around the world . Assad , backed on the ground by Iranian combatants and Lebanon 's Hezbollah in addition to big power ally Russia , is showing no appetite for a negotiated ceasefire . He said this week that the government 's goal was to recapture all of Syria , though he said this could take time .