Kerry, Lavrov Say New Syria Agreement Close

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "have achieved clarity" on a path to restore a truce in Syria but details remain to be worked out.

After meeting off-and-on with Lavrov for nearly 10 hours in Geneva on Friday, Kerry said the "vast majority" of technical discussions on steps to reinstate a ceasefire and improve humanitarian access have been completed. Kerry says experts will remain in Geneva with an eye toward finalizing the unresolved steps in the coming days.

Lavrov echoed that, saying "we still need to finalize a few issues". He insisted that a resumption of U.N.-mediated talks between the Syrian government and the U.S.-backed opposition that were suspended in April should help reduce hostilities that have flared in recent months. He also hailed an improved atmosphere between Moscow and Washington. "We have continued our efforts to reduce the areas where we lack understanding and trust, which is an achievement," Lavrov said.

"We are close," Kerry said. "But we are not going to rush to an agreement until it satisfies fully the needs of the Syrian people." Kerry said he and Lavrov agreed that there was no military solution to the Syrian situation.

He said the past few weeks of talks had been "fair, diligent, productive" and that the remaining "technical issues" would be worked out in the next few days, to "overcome the deep mistrust on all sides." "The conflict will not end without a political solution," Kerry said. "It is really the only viable path towards peace and security and normalcy that the Syrian people deserve." 

Source : QNA