Syria conflict: US suspends talks with Russia
The US has said it is suspending talks with Russia over Syria, accusing Moscow of having “failed to live up” to its commitments under a ceasefire deal, BBC writes.
According to the source, in state department spokesman John Kirby said: “The United States is suspending its participation in bilateral channels with Russia that were established to sustain the cessation of hostilities.
“Unfortunately, Russia failed to live up to its own commitments... and was also either unwilling or unable to ensure Syrian regime adherence to the arrangements to which Moscow agreed.
“Rather, Russia and the Syrian regime have chosen to pursue a military course,” Mr Kirby said, admitting that “this is not a decision that was taken lightly”.
He said Moscow and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's troops had been “targeting of critical infrastructure such as hospitals, and preventing humanitarian aid from reaching civilians in need, including through the 19 September attack on a humanitarian aid convoy”.
In response to the US suspension of the talks, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: “We regret this decision by Washington.”
“Washington simply did not fulfil the key condition of the agreement to improve the humanitarian condition around Aleppo.
“After failing to fulfil the agreements that they themselves worked out, they are trying to shift responsibility on to someone else,” Ms Zakharova said.