The Latest: Syrian army confirms 48-hour truce in Aleppo
The announcement was slightly different than the one that came from U.S. officials, who said that the United States and Russia have persuaded Syria's government and moderate rebels to extend a fragile truce to Aleppo.
Frank-Walter Steinmeier called for President Bashar Assad's government and all armed groups to respect the cease-fire in full and give the people of Aleppo "a respite from war and violence."
Steinmeier and his French counterpart Jean-Marc Ayrault held meetings earlier Wednesday with U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura and Syrian opposition leader Riad Hijab, part of diplomatic efforts to help shore up the cease-fire after days of fighting in Aleppo.
Jordan says refugees pose a potential security risk, with some coming from areas controlled by the extremist Islamic State group, and need to be vetted carefully.
France's foreign minister says President Bashar Assad's government bears full responsibility for the violence in Syria's Aleppo and everything must be done to restore a cease-fire.
Jean-Marc Ayrault, who was in Berlin Wednesday for meetings with his German counterpart, the U.N. envoy for Syria and a Syrian opposition leader, says "strong actions" will be needed to revive peace negotiations.
The German and French foreign ministers are meeting the U.N. envoy for Syria for talks aimed at expanding a limited cease-fire and getting the stalled peace process back on track.
Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov gave no details Wednesday about how many aircraft remained, saying only that it was precisely the number necessary for fighting the Islamic State group and the Syrian al-Qaida affiliate known as the Nusra Front.
Jan Egeland, who leads a task force on humanitarian aid in Syria, said in Geneva on Wednesday that there were "new possible besieged areas," and that hundreds of relief workers could not operate in the northern city of Aleppo, where "the population is bleeding."
State TV says that also on Wednesday, government troops repelled a rebel attack on an Aleppo suburb controlled by the government.
Pro-opposition activists confirmed the report, adding that government forces regained control of a former mall that had become a new front line with rebel fighters in the western part of the city.