U.S. weighs Russia’s offer of military talks on Syria

The Obama administration is weighing an offer from Russia to have military-to-military talks and meetings on the situation in Syria amid increasing U.S. concern and uncertainty about Russia’s military buildup there, Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday. Kerry suggested that he favored such an idea, noting that the United States wants a clear picture of what Russia’s intentions are in Syria.

It is vital to avoid misunderstandings, miscalculations (and) not to put ourselves in a predicament where we are supposing something and the supposition is wrong.

Secretary of State John Kerry

Kerry’s comments come as Russia’s military buildup in Syria has left the Obama administration perplexed and in a quandary as to how to respond. In the afterglow of the Iran nuclear deal, which was hailed by the administration as the kind of diplomacy that can be achieved when Russia and the United States cooperate, U.S. officials had hoped for a change in Russia’s position, potentially even enlisting its support to move Assad out. Moscow’s latest actions, however, have taken many by surprise and further muddied efforts to fight Islamic State militants while trying to promote political transition in the country.

The decision-making process in that country [Russia] is rather opaque.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest

Middle East John Kerry