New talks between John Kerry
and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov ended without agreement.
Diplomats from the United States and Russia met on the
sidelines of the G20 economic summit on Monday but failed to reach an agreement
that would bring an end to violence in Syria, officials said.
U.S. Secretary
of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov met to discuss the ongoing crisis in the country but they could not come to an agreement, a senior
State Department official told the Associated Press.
But the negotiations are not dead in the water.
Despite the failure to secure an agreement, U.S. President Barack Obama and
Russian President Vladimir Putin met informally on Monday at the G20 economic
summit in China.
Details of their
private meeting will be released later in the day, White House spokesman Ned
Price said, according to the Associated Press.
The Syrian war has left more than 300,000 people dead,
forced millions to flee the country into neighbouring states or into Europe via
treacherous routes, as well as internally displacing millions. The conflict is
now in its sixth year.
Washington is
supporting a small number of Syrian rebels in the hope that they will help to defeat more extremist elements on the
ground in the country, such as the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) and
Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, formerly known as the Al-Nusra Front.
Moscow is
backing the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, launching an air strike
campaign in the country from September 2015 to target the same extremist groups
as well as more moderate rebel groups opposed to his rule.
Putin’s forces
are involved in the government battle to recapture the northern city of Aleppo,
which has acted as the heart of the revolution against Assad for more than five
years.
Despite agreed
ceasefires, conflict has continued on both sides. There are hopes that an end to the violence could see aid
delivered to civilians who have bore the brunt of the war. But Syrian forces
continued their siege on Aleppo on Sunday, making the likelihood of a
U.S.-Russian deal all the more distant.
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