Washington (IINA) – The United States warned Russia on Friday that potential military cooperation envisioned by a ceasefire deal in Syria will not happen unless humanitarian aid begins to flow into Aleppo and other besieged communities, AP reported.
Secretary of State John Kerry told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a telephone call that Moscow must persuade the Syrian government to get the aid moving and described the delays in assistance to Aleppo as "repeated" and "unacceptable" and said Russia must press Syrian President Bashar Assad to allow deliveries.
Kerry "emphasized that the United States expects Russia to use its influence on the Assad regime to allow UN humanitarian convoys to reach Aleppo and other areas in need," State Department spokesman John Kirby said.
"The secretary made clear that the United States will not establish the Joint Implementation Center with Russia unless and until the agreed terms for humanitarian access are met," he added.
The White House said President Obama expressed "deep concern" that Syria continues to block the delivery of humanitarian aid, despite decreased violence across the country. He emphasized that the U.S. will not proceed with the next steps in the arrangement with Russia "until we see seven continuous days of reduced violence and sustained humanitarian access".
The agreement that Kerry and Lavrov reached last week calls for sustained delivery of humanitarian aid, along with a decrease in violence, as a requirement for the military cooperation to target Daesh and al-Qaeda-linked groups in Syria.
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