Kerry Says Russian Aid to Syria is Hurting Peace Talks
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has accused Russia of hampering diplomatic efforts to end the Syrian crisis by enabling the Assad government on the battlefield.
“In an appearance in the Indonesian capital, Kerry complained that Moscow, along with Iran and the Hezbollah militant group, are providing the military support and aid that allow the Syrian regime to ‘double down’ in the war,” wrote the Los Angeles Times.
“‘Russia needs to be a part of the solution and not contribute so much in weapons and aid that they allow Assad to double down,’ Kerry said. ‘It’s very clear that [Syrian President] Bashar al-Assad is trying to win this on the battlefield.’ Kerry said the U.S. will ‘continue to look at options’ for settling the war and easing its mounting humanitarian crisis. He seemed to rule out military options, saying the U.S. believes there is no military solution to the war.”
Syria Blames U.S. for Creating ‘Negative Climate’ at Geneva Talks
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem has accused the U.S. of creating a “negative climate” at last week’s Geneva peace talks, the AP reports.
“The comments by Walid al-Moallem come a day after the meetings between Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government and the opposition seeking his ouster ended without finding a way of breaking the impasse in the nearly three-year-old conflict,” the wire reports.
“Al-Moallem spoke to the state news service about the talks as the Syrian delegation was returning from Switzerland to Damascus on Sunday. He said the U.S. tried to ‘create a very negative climate for dialogue in Geneva.’”
At the same time, “the leader of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, pledged to fight on alongside Assad’s troops until Sunni Muslim extremists fighting with the rebels are defeated. ‘We will remain where we should be, our policy hasn’t changed,’ Nasrallah said in a televised speech to commemorate the death of three of the group’s leaders.”
Hezbollah Says It Will Quit Fighting in Syria If Arabs Stop Meddling
Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah has called “for Arab political forces to ‘stop the war on Syria,’ promising that if they left the country alone, his Lebanese Shiite group would also withdraw.”
Reuters writes that “the three-year-old conflict in Syria has fuelled Sunni-Shiite tensions in neighboring Lebanon and across the wider Arab world. It has drawn in militants who fight on both sides and receive funding and arms from rival regional powers. ‘If you want to prevent this region from falling into chaos that will not end for decades, stop the war on Syria,’ Nasrallah said, addressing all political forces in the Arab world.
“Get the fighters out of Syria, let the Syrians reconcile,” said Nasrallah, according to the paper. “Of course if that happened, we would not remain in Syria either.”
“Hezbollah fighters helped turn the tide for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the military struggle against rebels last year. Assad now has a firm hold on much of central Syrian territory around the capital and the Syrian-Lebanese border. Nasrallah’s speech also appeared to be a response to Lebanese politician Saad Hariri, who on Friday vowed to tackle militancy within his own Sunni sect but said Hezbollah must end its involvement in Syria to avoid a ‘sectarian holocaust.’”
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