U.N. Security Council Legitimizes Assad Regime, Condemns Militants backed by Obama

On December 18, 2015, the UN Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 2254, which included a "road map for a peace process in Syria, setting a timetable" for talks between the parties. This resolution, which stemmed from a Russian initiative, granted de-facto legal status to the statement of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG), which convened in Vienna on November 14, 2015.

Responsibility for the Crisis: While the Geneva Communique placed responsibility for the crisis primarily on the regime, in UNSCR 2254 responsibility is placed on all sides, though the main responsibility for protecting the population is placed on the regime.

Terrorism: Great emphasis is placed on the danger that terrorist organizations, chiefly ISIS and Jabhat Al-Nusra (JN), pose to the future of Syria, the region, and the world, and on the need to eliminate them.