Kerry and Lavrov have been in talks for weeks over a deal to boost USA and Russian military cooperation to fight the Islamic State group and other extremists in Syria.
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Top diplomats from the United States and Russian Federation on Monday failed to reach a deal to ease fighting in Syria, US officials said, after government troops encircled rebel-held parts of Aleppo.
A proposed Syrian cease-fire was discussed on Monday during a 90-minute meeting between Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Hangzhou, China. “If it can not get done, we won’t sign on to a bad deal”.
But with previous ceasefire agreements in Syria having failed, the president said US officials remain skeptical that talks will produce lasting peace.
A truce brokered by the Cold War foes in February collapsed and peace talks crumbled earlier this year, with the Syrian government side and the opposition accusing each other of violating it.
Washington and Moscow have sought for weeks to secure a cease-fire between Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government and extremist groups operating in Syria.
“Carter accused Moscow of “unprofessional behavior” in Syria, Ukraine and cyberspace, alleging the Russians have a clear ambition to erode the principled global order”.
Washington has repeatedly said that Assad must step down in order for a lasting peace deal.
The United Nations has repeatedly called for a cease in fighting to allow the delivery of aid to besieged civilians in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo.
This is the second time in two weeks that Kerry and Lavrov have failed to reach a deal on a ceasefire deal.
Meanwhile, the recapture and return to siege of rebel-held parts of Aleppo dealt a major blow to insurgent groups.
In his first meeting with May since she took office in Britain, Obama sought to demonstrate American solidarity with the United Kingdom amid the tumult over its decision to leave the European Union. Russian Federation is insisting that opposition forces be separated from al-Qaeda-linked militants in Aleppo. “There is a great phrase: nothing is agreed until everything is agreed”, Ryabkov said.
Writing in The Times, Mr Johnson said Russia’s current approach to the conflict is keeping the Syrian leader in power.
“And we’ll see in coming days whether on Syria we can reach a near-term agreement”.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said U.S. diplomats were trying to persuade Russian Federation to take steps toward a true ceasefire in Syria and to nudge Damascus toward a political transition but news out of Syria was “not encouraging”. But officials removed Lavrov’s podium just before Kerry came out – alone – to announce that no agreement had been finalized.
The White House wants to determine whether the Minsk ceasefire can be implemented before Obama leaves office in January, or whether economic sanctions on Russian Federation will need to be extended, the official said.
Earlier truces in Syria have rapidly deteriorated, and Obama warned Sunday that the U.S. was approaching the talks “with some scepticism”.
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In an article published on Wednesday, the Foreign Secretary said the Kremlin should drop its support for Syrian dictator Bashar Assad whom he branded a “killing machine”. “To get some relief from the terror of constant bombings”.
