International talks on the Syrian crisis are to resume within two
weeks after a first round in Vienna on Friday was overshadowed by mass
casualties in a government attack on an opposition-held area near
Damascus. UN efforts are to concentrate on implementing a country-wide
ceasefire.
Tensions between Iran, a staunch supporter of President Bashar al-Assad, and its rival Saudi Arabia, which insists Assad must step down or face military defeat, were evident at the meeting. Crucially but predictably, no agreement was reached on Assad’s fate, so agreement to continue discussions was probably the best possible outcome.
John Kerry, the US secretary of state, accentuated the positive after the seven-hour meeting in the Austrian capital: “The US position is that there is no way that Assad can unite and govern Syria, but we cannot allow that difference to get in the way of diplomacy to find a solution.”
Kerry referred to the announced deployment of US special forces in Syria as part of a “two-pronged” approach. “We are intensifying our counter-Daesh [Isis] campaign and intensifying our diplomatic efforts to end the conflict,” he said. “We believe these steps are mutually reinforcing.”
Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said Moscow was determined to fight terrorism in accordance with international law.
Tensions between Iran, a staunch supporter of President Bashar al-Assad, and its rival Saudi Arabia, which insists Assad must step down or face military defeat, were evident at the meeting. Crucially but predictably, no agreement was reached on Assad’s fate, so agreement to continue discussions was probably the best possible outcome.
John Kerry, the US secretary of state, accentuated the positive after the seven-hour meeting in the Austrian capital: “The US position is that there is no way that Assad can unite and govern Syria, but we cannot allow that difference to get in the way of diplomacy to find a solution.”
Kerry referred to the announced deployment of US special forces in Syria as part of a “two-pronged” approach. “We are intensifying our counter-Daesh [Isis] campaign and intensifying our diplomatic efforts to end the conflict,” he said. “We believe these steps are mutually reinforcing.”
Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said Moscow was determined to fight terrorism in accordance with international law.
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