One month ago, thanks to the efforts of United Nations special envoy Kofi Annan, both the Syrian government and the opposition forces in Syria accepted a ceasefire plan.

Although there has been continuing violence in the past month, it has not been so frequent and destructive as it was before the ceasefire, said Major General Robert Mood from Norway, head of Mission and Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization.

How long even this incomplete ceasefire can last remains uncertain, as it was expedient rather than a long-term strategy for the two sides; In other words, they accepted Annan's proposal, not because they wanted peace, but because they realized neither was able to defeat the other in the short term.