The US and Russia have agreed to impose a ceasefire in Syria and to coordinate military operations against terrorist groups in the country should the action hold.

John Kerry, the US secretary of state, said that the ceasefire was intended to lay the foundation for a peaceful end to the country's civil war.

The agreement was reached after marathon talks in Geneva led by Mr Kerry and Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, and announced in a joint news conference on Friday.

Mr Kerry said the truce would begin on Monday, to coincide with the Muslim holiday Eid al-Fitr, and that he hoped it would lead to talks to ultimately "end the conflict".

"The United States is going the extra mile here because we believe Russia and my colleague have the capability to press the Assad regime to stop this conflict and come to the table and make peace," he said.