“Despite our urging, Moscow has yet to stop the Assad regime’s horrific practice of barrel bombing the Syrian people”, Patterson said.
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Friday’s multilateral meeting in Vienna did not produce any agreement over Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s future. He added that Moscow “may not care if Assad stays as we do”.
Her remarks appeared to suggest a difference of approach compared with Iran, which has sent forces to fight alongside Assad’s military.
The head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, Maj.
A US defense official said Tuesday’s test did not amount to joint training with the Russians, as Moscow has described it in a statement.
Syria’s deputy foreign minister rejected the idea of a transitional period sought by Western states that want Assad removed from power.
Iran has repeatedly called for an end to Western intervention in the Middle East, so it is not surprising that it hascontributed to the continuation of a Syrian government that shares Iran’s interests. “We think it’s premature before the Vienna group meets again”, state department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau said.
“We know that Russia’s primary intent is to preserve the regime”, she said.
Assad’s Syrian and foreign opponents dismissed last year’s election as a sham.
The United States and Russian Federation are leading parallel air campaigns against various Sunni militant groups inside Syria.
A frame grab taken from footage released by Russia’s Defence Ministry on October 9, 2015, shows a Russian Su-34 fighter-bomber dropping a bomb in the air over Syria.
Hours later, the Pentagon said its fighter pilots had communicated directly with Russian jets in the skies over Syria in the first test of a new strategy to ensure the two sides’ parallel campaigns do not boil over into conflict.
“Two lists need to be agreed upon”, he said.
She said Moscow has claimed that it is striking terrorists, but that so far, 85 to 90 percent of Syrian strikes have hit moderate Syrian opposition forces and have also killed civilians.
Syrian state television said the road would be open for civilians from Thursday.
The talks are expected to be discussed Wednesday at a meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and United Nations Syrian envoy Staffan de Mistura, Bogdanov said. The war has killed an estimated 250,000 people and driven more than 11 million from their homes.
Aleppo and its surrounding province have seen heavy fighting since the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, fighters from Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and Iranian militiamen, launched an offensive on rebel-held areas last month.
It was also a rare heavy Russian bombardment targeting Islamic State rather than other insurgent groups.
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At the same time at the Vienna talks the White House said U.S. President Barack Obama has authorized the first sustained deployment of special forces to Syria, which marks a U-turn in the U.S.’ long-time principle of not putting US boots on the ground.
