Kerry spoke immediately after Lavrov, whose comments underscored a breakdown in trust since the pair sealed the cease-fire agreement and potential U.S.
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Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said these were “the most intense strikes in months”, while opposition activists accused the Syrian government and its ally Russian Federation of dropping “incendiary phosphorous bombs”.
The testy exchange, that took place as the world watched, came after two attacks on medical convoys.
The conflict has wrought a devastating human toll, killing hundreds of thousands, displacing half the country’s pre-war population of 22 million and included poison gas attacks, starvation sieges and raids on hospitals.
“Absent a major gesture, we don’t believe there is a point in making more promises”, he insisted, suggesting U.S. was on the verge of scrapping the agreement if it didn’t see a cessation of air activities by the Russian and Syrian militaries, or similarly concrete action.
The army’s announcement did not say whether the campaign would also include a ground incursion.
In New York, John Kerry, the American secretary of state, was set to meet with Sergey Lavrov, his Russian counterpart, and other members of the 23-nation International Syria Support Group to push for a resumption of the cease-fire.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters after the meeting of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG), consisting of about 20 countries, that Russia would continue their consultations with the US.
The Syrian army has announced a major new offensive on rebel-held eastern Aleppo after worldwide powers with a stake in country’s civil war failed to revive a collapsed ceasefire during diplomatic talks in NY. Food aid promised for them under the US-Russia deal has been stuck at the border since last week and will go bad in a few days.
Food aid for rebel-held east Aleppo, which has been stalled at the Syrian border since last week, will go bad in days, the United Nations said, urging Assad to clear the delivery.
But the deal collapsed Monday after the US inadvertently struck a Syrian regime camp killing 62 regime soldiers.
On Thursday the Syrian army announced it would launch a new offensive in rebel-held areas of eastern Aleppo – defying the truce.
Assad told AP that Russian Federation was not behind a deadly attack on an aid convoy on Monday, which United States officials have said they believe Moscow was responsible for.
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USA officials told the BBC on Tuesday that their information clearly indicated that it was an air strike, and that two Russian Su-24 ground attack aircraft were in the sky above the convoy at the precise moment it came under fire.
