The exchange came after talks between Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov failed to result in a Syria ceasefire agreement.
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A deal in Syria being discussed by the United States and Russian Federation, which would involve a country-wide ceasefire and focus on delivering aid to embattled Aleppo, could be announced soon, Washington’s Syria envoy has said.
“But if we do not get some buy-in from the Russians on reducing the violence and easing the humanitarian crisis, then it’s hard to see how we get to the next phase”, said Obama.
The failure surprised USA officials, who came to Hangzhou confident a deal could be reached.
He was speaking to media on the sidelines of the Group of 20 economic summit in the Chinese city of Hangzhou. But the meeting ended without agreement, the call was canceled and only Kerry spoke.
“Even Russia can not have an interest in seeing the fighting continue in Syria”.
Presidents Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin were expected to meet later Monday. “The most intense work is continuing”. He said Putin and Obama discussed Syria and issues related to Ukraine with their delegations present, and then spoke briefly in private.
“The process will continue”, Interfax cited the source as saying.
A possible deal could include provisions to ensure aid can reach besieged areas of Syria and steps to prevent Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government from bombing areas where USA -backed rebels are operating.
Caught in the middle are Syria’s civilians. The campaign has spurred a humanitarian crisis and caused millions of Syrians to flee for Europe.
The U.S. -based group Veterans For Peace issued a statement calling on the U.S. government to halt all military operations and intervention in Syria, while also warning against pundits who are using a recent photo of a child in Aleppo as a propaganda tool to urge for a military escalation against the Syrian government.
Any deal to end widespread suffering in Syria was likely to be met with doubt after past settlements, including a ceasefire agreed to in February, failed – a fact Obama acknowledged on Sunday. “However, we must ensure that it is an effective agreement”, the official said.
It was the first meeting between Merkel and Putin in several months. The president said he would consult with European partners in coming days.
Syrian rebel groups have worked alongside Nusra Front, which is now known as Syria Conquest Front. Negotiators on both sides have spent weeks looking at maps of areas where opposition groups operate and where Assad’s forces would be prohibited from launching airstrikes.
A main stumbling block has been identifying which areas are controlled by Jabhat Fatah Al-Sham, and which by the moderate opposition.
The statement further stressed that such a situation would lead to destruction and violence similar to what happened in Libya following the USA -led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation intervention. The US wants Russian Federation to focus exclusively on IS and al-Qaida-linked groups. Amid the chaos, IS has emerged as a global terror threat.
Obama and Putin discussed possible joint military action against the al-Qaeda affiliate but the administration official said that point remained unresolved.
Yet, he said the Russian-American talks are key for efforts to reduce violence in the Arab state. Russian Federation in turn accuses the USA of sheltering terrorist groups.
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