ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The CIA and Pentagon have expressed doubts that Russia will abide by the latest ceasefire agreement in Syria. The Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad and the official coalition of Syrian opposition groups said on Tuesday that they will abide by a ceasefire brokered by the United States and Russia, which is scheduled to go into effect on Saturday. However, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine General Joseph Dunford and the CIA chief John Brennan do not believe the Russians will act in accordance with the terms, and will continue bombing. They have called for the US to take actions which will "inflict real pain on the Russians." According to the Wall Street Journal such actions could include increasing covert support to Assad's opponents, which include the CIA-backed Southern Front that Russia has been bombing in Syria's southern Deraa province. However, officials are doubtful that increasing support to such groups now would make any difference, since they have already lost ground to the Russian-backed Syrian offensive aiming to close the border to Jordan.These officials are working on a series of contingency plans, should this latest ceasefire breakdown. The Wall Street Journal quoted one senior administration official reasoning that, "We would be derelict were we not to plan for various contingencies, especially given the tragic history of this conflict."
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