VIENTIANE, Laos—U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said progress is being made with Russia on a potential military partnership that could strengthen a faltering truce in Syria despite grave doubts expressed by the Pentagon and joint chiefs of staff.
Speaking Tuesday after meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Laos, Kerry made no promises of success but said he hoped discussions with Russia could produce a tangible result in the next week to 10 days.
“My hope would be that somewhere in early August — the first week or so, somewhere in there — we would be in a position to be able stand up in front of you and tell you what we’re able to do with the hopes that it can make a difference to the lives of people in Syria and to the course of the war,” he said.
His comments followed remarks from Defense Secretary Ash Carter on Monday in which he said Kerry’s efforts with Russia have been complicated by the fact that Russia is focused mainly on supporting the Syrian government, which he said has had the effect of prolonging the civil war.
“We had hoped that they would promote a political solution and transition to put an end to the civil war, which is the beginning of all this violence in Syria, and then combat extremists rather than moderate opposition, which has to be part of that transition,” Carter said at a Pentagon news conference with Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “So they’re a long way from doing that.”
