Kerry has been talking to Russian officials about a proposal in which the US would share intelligence and targeting information with the Russians.
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Kerry confirmed the topic was discussed with Lavrov but did not provide details.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry smiles during 6th East Asia Summit Foreign Minister’s meeting in Vientiane, Laos, Tuesday, July 26, 2016.
Lavrov brushed off accusations that Moscow was behind the hacking ahead of the meeting.
REUTERS picAny military or intelligence cooperation between the United States and Russian Federation to strike targets in Syria would include measures to ensure USA operational security and would not be based on trust, a top US military official said on Monday. And to the extent that Russia can align with USA interests, we work with them as has been the case in Iran, North Korea and other places where USA and Russian interests have aligned. And I think that would be a good thing if they did. I think we’re a ways from getting that frame of mind in Russian Federation. “But that’s what Secretary Kerry is working toward”. “I raised the question and we will continue to work to see precisely what those facts are”, Kerry said.
USA defense and intelligence agencies have reportedly had strong reservations about sharing intelligence with the Russians or cooperating in a way that could reveal sensitive US military methods, techniques, and procedures. In exchange Moscow would use its influence with the Syrian regime to effectively ground the Syrian air force and promote a political solution to a civil war that has killed as many as a half a million people.
“We’re not entering into a transaction that is based on trust”, Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford said at a press briefing at the Pentagon.
Gen. Dunford has reportedly been involved in the Kerry-led negotiations with Russian Federation, which after months of Russian Federation offering coordination came amid reports the U.S. was keen to expand the fight to include al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front. Several conditions would apply, including Russian Federation committing to grounding Syria’s bombers and starting a long-sought political transition process.
Currently, the USA military has limited contacts with the Russians to avoid misunderstandings and ensure force protection for US air and ground forces, but “it’s not based on trust”, Dunford said.
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The Obama administration is considering a plan to cooperate with Russian Federation in Syria by sharing intelligence and mounting joint airstrikes on Islamic State militants, the local al-Qaida affiliate known as al Nusra and other Syrian rebel groups.
