Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday informed US counterpart Donald Trump of his talks with Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, saying Damascus is in favour of conducting parliamentary and presidential polls, the Kremlin said. “Vladimir Putin informed Donald Trump of the main results of a meeting with …
Read More »Syria on agenda as Putin and Erdogan meet in Russia
Sochi, Russia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in Sochi on Monday, with efforts to bring peace to Syria set to dominate their talks at the Black Sea resort. Despite being on opposing sides of the Syrian conflict, Russia and Turkey have …
Read More »Trump, Putin agree ‘no military solution’ in Syria
Danang, Vietnam | AFP | The United States and Russia issued a presidential joint statement saying there was “no military solution” to the war in Syria after their leaders met briefly on the sidelines of a regional summit in Vietnam. There had been mixed messages for days from both Moscow and …
Read More »Macron warns looming military defeat of IS ‘not the end’
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | AFP | French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that the Islamic State group faced complete military defeat in Iraq and Syria within months but warned the battle against jihadism would go on. He was speaking after Syrian troops and allied militiamen broke into the IS-held …
Read More »Syria not invited to Paris climate talks despite joining accord
Paris, France | AFP | Despite signing up to the Paris climate accord Syria has not been invited to a summit on the pact in the French capital in December, the French foreign ministry said Wednesday. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad joins US President Donald Trump in being omitted from the list …
Read More »Syria to join Paris climate pact, isolating US
Bonn, Germany | AFP | Syria told the UN climate talks in Bonn on Tuesday that it would join the Paris Agreement, leaving the United States as the only nation in the world opting to stay outside the landmark treaty. “We are going to join the Paris Agreement,” the Syrian delegate, …
Read More »Russia accuses US of blocking humanitarian aid in Syria
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia on Friday accused the United States of committing a “war crime” in Syria, saying its army had denied Syrian refugees access to humanitarian aid. “The most severe humanitarian situation remains in the Al-Tanf region,” the Russian defence ministry’s Syria reconciliation centre said, referring to a …
Read More »Who’s who in the Syria conflict
Beirut, Lebanon | AFP | Syria’s war has spiralled into a complex multi-sided conflict since it began with anti-government protests in March 2011, drawing in regional and international powers including the United States and Russia. Here is a breakdown of the forces involved in the war, which has killed more than …
Read More »Russia accuses US-led forces of ‘bloody provocations’ in Syria
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov accused US-led forces of carrying out “bloody provocations” against Russian troops in Syria in an interview published by the Saudi-owned newspaper Asharq al-Awsat on Wednesday. “The activities of US-led forces raise many questions… In some cases, these forces have indirectly …
Read More »Putin heads to Turkey for talks on weapons deal, Syria
Istanbul, Turkey | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday meets his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for talks on Syria and a key weapons deal, hoping to strengthen an increasingly active relationship that has troubled the West. Despite a regional rivalry that goes back to the Ottoman Empire and …
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