A man sat behind a broken window in May in a part of Aleppo, government forces. Water has been scarce in the controlled by Credit George city after pumps were damaged in fighting OurfalianAgence France Presse Getty Images He doesn't want any preconditions to exist, he wants to be able to control the process, he wants to decide about the timing," said Alexis Lamek, France s deputy ambassador. "1 don't see how we can have meaningful talks if there is not the minimal conducive environment for that. Samantha Power, the United States ambassador, was also pessimistic: "Were in reverse gear" on the issues of humanitarian access and a cessation of hostilities in the conflict, she said, the two conditions for peace talks to resume. "So we've always understood that these were three legs on a stool, and in order for the stool to be upright, all of the legs have to be stable she said. "And from what we heard, we're a long way from that. Mr. O'Brien, who spoke outside the council's chambers after his appearance, said he had told council diplomats of"the horrific humanitarian situation in Aleppo, where fighting rages and two million people live in fear of besiegement. He said children were especially vulnerable from the water crisis and that wells drilled in the city were"not nearly enough to sustain the population.