US President Barack Obama said Thursday that he was &quot;not confident&quot; that Russia and President Vladimir Putin could be trusted as partners in trying to end Syria&#39;s bloody civil war. 
 
&quot;I&#39;m not confident that we can trust the Russians and (President) Vladimir Putin, which is why we have to test whether or not we can get an actual cessation of hostilities that includes an end to the kinds of aerial bombing and civilian death and destruction that we have seen carried out by the Assad regime,&quot; Obama said. 
 
&quot;We go into this without any blinders on.&quot; 
 
Obama expressed concern about Russia&#39;s military action in support of the Syrian regime, and urged Moscow to cooperate with Washington to find a way out of the crisis. 
 
&quot;The US remains prepared to work with Russia to try to reduce the violence and strengthen our efforts against Islamic State, al-Qaeda and Syria,&quot; Obama told reporters at the Pentagon. 
 
&quot;But Russia has failed to take the necessary steps. Given the deteriorating situation, it is time for Russia to show it is serious about pursuing these objectives,&quot; Obama said, following a meeting with his national security council. 
 
Russia and the United States back opposing sides in Syria&#39;s five-year war, which has left 280,000 people dead and forced half the population to flee their homes. 
 
Multiple rounds of international negotiations to end the war, which erupted in 2011 after the Assad regime unleashed a brutal crackdown against a pro-democracy revolt, have so far failed. 
 
Russia, an ally of Damascus, and the United States, which supports moderate rebels fighting to unseat Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, are nominally co-chairs of the international effort to bring the Syrian regime and armed opposition groups to the negotiating table as a step toward ending the war. 
 
Following heavy Russian air strikes on the outskirts of divided Aleppo city, US secretary of state John Kerry on Monday urged Russia to &quot;restrain&quot; itself and its ally in Damascus from &quot;offensive operations.&quot; 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

Washington has urged Moscow to 'restrain' itself and its ally in Damascus from 'offensive operations'

US President Barack Obama said Thursday that he was "not confident" that Russia and President Vladimir Putin could be trusted as partners in trying to end Syria's bloody civil war. "I'm not confident that we can trust the Russians and (President) Vladimir Putin, which is why we have to test whether or not we can get an actual cessation of hostilities that includes an end to the kinds of aerial bombing and civilian death and destruction that we have seen carried out by the Assad regime," Obama said. "We go into this without any blinders on." Obama expressed concern about Russia's military action in support of the Syrian regime, and urged Moscow to cooperate with Washington to find a way out of the crisis. "The US remains prepared to work with Russia to try to reduce the violence and strengthen our efforts against Islamic State, al-Qaeda and Syria," Obama told reporters at the Pentagon. "But Russia has failed to take the necessary steps. Given the deteriorating situation, it is time for Russia to show it is serious about pursuing these objectives," Obama said, following a meeting with his national security council. Russia and the United States back opposing sides in Syria's five-year war, which has left 280,000 people dead and forced half the population to flee their homes. Multiple rounds of international negotiations to end the war, which erupted in 2011 after the Assad regime unleashed a brutal crackdown against a pro-democracy revolt, have so far failed. Russia, an ally of Damascus, and the United States, which supports moderate rebels fighting to unseat Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, are nominally co-chairs of the international effort to bring the Syrian regime and armed opposition groups to the negotiating table as a step toward ending the war. Following heavy Russian air strikes on the outskirts of divided Aleppo city, US secretary of state John Kerry on Monday urged Russia to "restrain" itself and its ally in Damascus from "offensive operations." (AFP)

US President Obama says not confident Putin can be trusted to cooperate in Syria

President Vladimir Putin said a shadowy political plot had succeeded in unfairly stripping some Russian sportspeople of the right to compete at the Rio Olympics over doping allegations and promised to defend Russia&#39;s tarnished sporting reputation. 
 
Addressing members of Russia&#39;s Olympic team in the Kremlin today, Putin said a decision by global sporting organisations to ban Russian track-and-field athletes and sportspeople in everything from swimming to rowing flew in the face of common sense and legality. 
 
&quot;The deliberate campaign targeting our athletes was characterised by so-called double standards and opted for the idea of collective responsibility, which is not compatible with sport, justice, or the basic norms of law,&quot; said Putin. &quot;It is an attempt to apply the rules which unfortunately dominate in geopolitics to the sporting world,&quot; he said, hitting out at what he called &quot;short-sighted political schemers.&quot; 
 
With Russia months away from parliamentary elections and stuck in an economic crisis, the scandal, which centres on allegations the Russian government and the FSB security service covered up doping for years, has rocked the Russian sports world and tarnished Putin&#39;s showcase 2014 winter Olympics. 
 
But his tactic of pinning the blame on a shadowy plot, which he has previously suggested emanates in the West, taps into voters&#39; patriotism and analysts say the imbroglio is unlikely to hurt his stratospheric ratings. 
 
Putin, a keen practitioner of judo and ice hockey, made his comments to over 100 sportspeople, some of whom have been banned from going to the Rio Games next month because of doping allegations by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) and other federations. 
 
He spoke after the IAAF said there were &quot;no grounds for further review&quot; of its original decision. Occasionally looking glassy-eyed and emotional, Putin complained that many of those prevented from going had not been served with specific or proven doping accusations. 
 
&quot;It is obvious that the absence of Russian sportspeople, leaders in many sporting disciplines, will significantly affect the intensity of the competition and diminish the spectator value of the forthcoming events,&quot; said Putin. 
 
Any medal won in Rio in the absence of Russian athletes would be worth much less than usual, he added, predicting many victories would be hollow. Pledging tough action against any sportspeople guilty of doping as well as the creation of a system to prevent the practice, Putin said someone was trying to rewrite the Olympics&#39; founding principles, of equality, fairness and mutual respect. 
 
The atmosphere at the meeting, held in a glittering hall in the Kremlin, was sombre. Double Olympic champion pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, one of the athletes unable to attend Rio because of the scandal, became emotional when she spoke after Putin, saying her Olympic dream and that of others had been stolen. 
 
Putin said Russians excelled in the face of adversity. &quot;There is an important and wonderful quality about the Russian character,&quot; said Putin. &quot;Difficulties only unite us and make us stronger,&quot; he added. 
 
(Reuters)

Putin complained that many athletes prevented from going to Rio had not been served with specific or proven doping accusations

President Vladimir Putin said a shadowy political plot had succeeded in unfairly stripping some Russian sportspeople of the right to compete at the Rio Olympics over doping allegations and promised to defend Russia's tarnished sporting reputation. Addressing members of Russia's Olympic team in the Kremlin today, Putin said a decision by global sporting organisations to ban Russian track-and-field athletes and sportspeople in everything from swimming to rowing flew in the face of common sense and legality. "The deliberate campaign targeting our athletes was characterised by so-called double standards and opted for the idea of collective responsibility, which is not compatible with sport, justice, or the basic norms of law," said Putin. "It is an attempt to apply the rules which unfortunately dominate in geopolitics to the sporting world," he said, hitting out at what he called "short-sighted political schemers." With Russia months away from parliamentary elections and stuck in an economic crisis, the scandal, which centres on allegations the Russian government and the FSB security service covered up doping for years, has rocked the Russian sports world and tarnished Putin's showcase 2014 winter Olympics. But his tactic of pinning the blame on a shadowy plot, which he has previously suggested emanates in the West, taps into voters' patriotism and analysts say the imbroglio is unlikely to hurt his stratospheric ratings. Putin, a keen practitioner of judo and ice hockey, made his comments to over 100 sportspeople, some of whom have been banned from going to the Rio Games next month because of doping allegations by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) and other federations. He spoke after the IAAF said there were "no grounds for further review" of its original decision. Occasionally looking glassy-eyed and emotional, Putin complained that many of those prevented from going had not been served with specific or proven doping accusations. "It is obvious that the absence of Russian sportspeople, leaders in many sporting disciplines, will significantly affect the intensity of the competition and diminish the spectator value of the forthcoming events," said Putin. Any medal won in Rio in the absence of Russian athletes would be worth much less than usual, he added, predicting many victories would be hollow. Pledging tough action against any sportspeople guilty of doping as well as the creation of a system to prevent the practice, Putin said someone was trying to rewrite the Olympics' founding principles, of equality, fairness and mutual respect. The atmosphere at the meeting, held in a glittering hall in the Kremlin, was sombre. Double Olympic champion pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva, one of the athletes unable to attend Rio because of the scandal, became emotional when she spoke after Putin, saying her Olympic dream and that of others had been stolen. Putin said Russians excelled in the face of adversity. "There is an important and wonderful quality about the Russian character," said Putin. "Difficulties only unite us and make us stronger," he added. (Reuters)

Russia's Putin says expelled athletes target of political plot

With the Rio Olympics less than three weeks away, the IOC on Monday promised &quot;the toughest sanctions available&quot; after a report found Moscow had concealed hundreds of positive doping tests in many sports ahead of the Sochi winter Games.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) did not spell out whether it would heed growing calls for Olympic bans already imposed on Russia&#39;s track and field athletes and weightlifters to be extended to all its competitors in Rio.

However, IOC President Thomas Bach said the independent World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) investigation had revealed &quot;a shocking and unprecedented attack on the integrity of sport and on the Olympic Games&quot;.

The IOC Executive Board is to hold a telephone conference today&nbsp;to take its first decisions, which may include provisional measures and sanctions with regard to the Rio Olympics.

&quot;Therefore, the IOC will not hesitate to take the toughest sanctions available against any individual or organisation implicated.&quot;

WADA itself explicitly urged the IOC to consider banning Russia from the Rio Olympics altogether.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who staked his reputation on the Sochi Games, the costliest in history, said the WADA-backed report was the result of political interference and that the Olympic movement could now split.

The report confirmed allegations made by Grigory Rodchenkov, former head of the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory.

He told the New York Times two months ago that dozens of Russians had used performance-enhancing drugs in Sochi with the support not only of national sports authorities but even the domestic intelligence service, the FSB.

Monday&#39;s report said Russia, a traditional sporting superpower, had been stung into action by its performance at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, where it finished 11th, with only three gold medals.

&quot;The surprise result of the Sochi investigation was the revelation of the extent of State oversight and directed control of the Moscow Laboratory in processing and covering up urine samples of Russian athletes from virtually all sports before and after the Sochi Games,&quot; said the report, unveiled in Toronto.

&#39;Failsafe strategy&#39;

The investigation was led by Canadian sports lawyer Richard McLaren, who sat on the independent commission that last year exposed doping and corruption in Russian track and field, leading to its exclusion from international competition.

The report said Deputy sports minister Yuri Nagornykh had been advised of every positive test across all sports from 2011 onwards and decided &quot;who would benefit from a cover up and who would not be protected.

&quot;The State implemented a simple failsafe strategy,&quot; it said. &quot;If all the operational precautions to promote and permit doping by Russian athletes proved to have been ineffective for whatever reason, the laboratory provided a failsafe mechanism.

&quot;The State had the ability to transform a positive analytical result into a negative one by ordering that the analytical process of the Moscow Laboratory be altered.&quot;

Among the hundreds of samples that disappeared were 35 from Paralympic athletes.

In Sochi itself, where international observers were scrutinising the drug tests, positive results could not simply be brushed away, so the FSB developed a method of opening urine bottles to allow samples to be swapped undetected.

Rodchenkov spoke of a clandestine night-time operation in which staff secretly took samples from the lab via a &quot;mouse hole&quot; cut into a wall, and replaced them with clean samples taken from the same athlete months earlier and sometimes manipulated.

&#39;Credible witnesses&#39;

McLaren said Rodchenkov and all other witnesses interviewed had been deemed credible, and the report said the investigators &quot;confirm the general veracity of the published information concerning the sample swapping that went on at the Sochi Laboratory during the Sochi Games&quot;.

The investigations showed that caps had been removed from a number of samples, and that they contained unusually high levels of salt, &quot;significantly exceeding the levels produced by the human body&quot;.

Nagornykh and sports minister Vitaly Mutko, who was mentioned 21 times in McLaren&#39;s 97-page report, were not immediately available for comment.

Putin said in a statement that there was &quot;no place for doping in sport&quot;, and that the officials named in the report would be suspended.

Following the statement, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev suspended deputy sports minister Nagornykh.

Putin also said the allegations were based on the testimony of only one man, and were an attempt to &quot;make sport an instrument of geopolitical pressure, to form a negative image of countries and peoples&quot;.

Harking back to the tit-for-tat superpower boycotts of the 1980s, he said: &quot;The Olympic movement ... may again be on the verge of a split.&quot;

In a leaked draft letter intended to be sent to the IOC on Monday, US&nbsp;Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart called for a ban on all Russian athletes, not only in track and field.

Paul Melia, head of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sports, said the letter was backed by various athletes&#39; committees and the anti-doping organisations of the United States, Germany, Japan and New Zealand, among others.

However, Russian track and field athletes have appealed against their ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which is due to rule by Thursday.

If it finds in their favour, there would seem to be little chance of a wider ban on Russian competitors holding up.

Bach had indicated last week that he was reluctant to see athletes from one sport punished for the crimes of athletes or officials from another. 
 
(Reuters)

It does not say yet whether it will heed calls to ban all Russian sportsmen and women from the Rio Olympics

With the Rio Olympics less than three weeks away, the IOC on Monday promised "the toughest sanctions available" after a report found Moscow had concealed hundreds of positive doping tests in many sports ahead of the Sochi winter Games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) did not spell out whether it would heed growing calls for Olympic bans already imposed on Russia's track and field athletes and weightlifters to be extended to all its competitors in Rio. However, IOC President Thomas Bach said the independent World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) investigation had revealed "a shocking and unprecedented attack on the integrity of sport and on the Olympic Games". The IOC Executive Board is to hold a telephone conference today to take its first decisions, which may include provisional measures and sanctions with regard to the Rio Olympics. "Therefore, the IOC will not hesitate to take the toughest sanctions available against any individual or organisation implicated." WADA itself explicitly urged the IOC to consider banning Russia from the Rio Olympics altogether. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who staked his reputation on the Sochi Games, the costliest in history, said the WADA-backed report was the result of political interference and that the Olympic movement could now split. The report confirmed allegations made by Grigory Rodchenkov, former head of the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory. He told the New York Times two months ago that dozens of Russians had used performance-enhancing drugs in Sochi with the support not only of national sports authorities but even the domestic intelligence service, the FSB. Monday's report said Russia, a traditional sporting superpower, had been stung into action by its performance at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, where it finished 11th, with only three gold medals. "The surprise result of the Sochi investigation was the revelation of the extent of State oversight and directed control of the Moscow Laboratory in processing and covering up urine samples of Russian athletes from virtually all sports before and after the Sochi Games," said the report, unveiled in Toronto. 'Failsafe strategy' The investigation was led by Canadian sports lawyer Richard McLaren, who sat on the independent commission that last year exposed doping and corruption in Russian track and field, leading to its exclusion from international competition. The report said Deputy sports minister Yuri Nagornykh had been advised of every positive test across all sports from 2011 onwards and decided "who would benefit from a cover up and who would not be protected. "The State implemented a simple failsafe strategy," it said. "If all the operational precautions to promote and permit doping by Russian athletes proved to have been ineffective for whatever reason, the laboratory provided a failsafe mechanism. "The State had the ability to transform a positive analytical result into a negative one by ordering that the analytical process of the Moscow Laboratory be altered." Among the hundreds of samples that disappeared were 35 from Paralympic athletes. In Sochi itself, where international observers were scrutinising the drug tests, positive results could not simply be brushed away, so the FSB developed a method of opening urine bottles to allow samples to be swapped undetected. Rodchenkov spoke of a clandestine night-time operation in which staff secretly took samples from the lab via a "mouse hole" cut into a wall, and replaced them with clean samples taken from the same athlete months earlier and sometimes manipulated. 'Credible witnesses' McLaren said Rodchenkov and all other witnesses interviewed had been deemed credible, and the report said the investigators "confirm the general veracity of the published information concerning the sample swapping that went on at the Sochi Laboratory during the Sochi Games". The investigations showed that caps had been removed from a number of samples, and that they contained unusually high levels of salt, "significantly exceeding the levels produced by the human body". Nagornykh and sports minister Vitaly Mutko, who was mentioned 21 times in McLaren's 97-page report, were not immediately available for comment. Putin said in a statement that there was "no place for doping in sport", and that the officials named in the report would be suspended. Following the statement, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev suspended deputy sports minister Nagornykh. Putin also said the allegations were based on the testimony of only one man, and were an attempt to "make sport an instrument of geopolitical pressure, to form a negative image of countries and peoples". Harking back to the tit-for-tat superpower boycotts of the 1980s, he said: "The Olympic movement ... may again be on the verge of a split." In a leaked draft letter intended to be sent to the IOC on Monday, US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart called for a ban on all Russian athletes, not only in track and field. Paul Melia, head of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sports, said the letter was backed by various athletes' committees and the anti-doping organisations of the United States, Germany, Japan and New Zealand, among others. However, Russian track and field athletes have appealed against their ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which is due to rule by Thursday. If it finds in their favour, there would seem to be little chance of a wider ban on Russian competitors holding up. Bach had indicated last week that he was reluctant to see athletes from one sport punished for the crimes of athletes or officials from another. (Reuters)

IOC vows 'toughest sanctions' after report corroborates systematic doping, cover-up by Moscow

Moscow offered to fly its jets over the Baltic region with their transponders engaged, an apparent concession to NATO powers who accuse Russia&#39;s air force of endangering aviation by turning off the devices that allow them to be detected by ground radar. 
 
Moscow&#39;s envoy to NATO told alliance ambassadors that Russian pilots could turn on the cockpit transmitters, known as transponders, if alliance planes did the same. 
 
&quot;We are ready to fly with transponders along certain flight trajectories,&quot; Russia&#39;s ambassador Alexander Grushko said after the NATO-Russia Council, a forum bringing together Russia and the 28 NATO ambassadors. 
 
&quot;The aircraft of many countries do fly in the region with their transponders off,&quot; Grushko said. 
 
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the proposal but said that all jets under NATO command already flew with their transponders on.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Transponders are important, but they are only one element of a broader picture related to air safety. The basic thing is safe behaviour, to fly in a safe and professional way,&quot; Stoltenberg said. 
 
The proposal comes after two years of several near misses between Western planes, both civilian and military, and Russian jets in the skies above the Baltics that NATO has patrolled since Russia&#39;s annexation of Crimea in 2014. 
 
It also comes after several gestures by Russian President Vladimir Putin that seem to aim at defusing East-West tensions despite NATO&#39;s summit last weekend in Warsaw. There, the alliance agreed to deploy a multinational force to the Baltics and Poland and to take over a US-built missile shield that Russia sees as hostile. 
 
Putin agreed to Wednesday&#39;s meeting of the NATO-Russia Council, only the second since mid-2014, while also recently allowing a UN resolution authorising the EU to intercept arms shipments to Libya in the Mediterranean. Putin has talked by telephone US President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Holland in recent days. 
 
&quot;Back to the Cold War&quot; 
 
The transponders plan, which was raised by Putin during a visit to Finland this month, was put to NATO ambassadors both by Russia&#39;s envoy and generals at the meeting at NATO headquarters. Diplomats said there was no detailed discussion. 
 
Diplomats told Reuters the Russian proposal appeared to be directed at US military reconnaissance flights that regularly fly through the region, and which Russia has intercepted in what Washington says is an unsafe manner. 
 
In one instance in April, Russia sent a fighter plane to intercept a US aircraft approaching its border over the Baltic Sea, accusing the plane of turning off its transponders. 
 
It was not immediately clear if US reconnaissance jets have flown with their transponders off in the region. 
 
In a sign of the continued strains between Russia and the West, Grushko reiterated Moscow&#39;s position that NATO&#39;s biggest modernisation since the end of the Cold War is putting Europe&#39;s security at risk. NATO denies that, saying its military build-up is a proportionate response to Russia&#39;s actions in Ukraine. 
 
&quot;The message was very clear. There is no reason for NATO to do what it is doing. The direction in which NATO is moving in military terms is very worrisome,&quot; Grushko said. &quot;It takes us back to the Cold War,&quot; he said. 
 
(Reuters)

The proposal comes after several gestures by Russian President aimed at defusing East-West tensions despite NATO's summit in Warsaw

Moscow offered to fly its jets over the Baltic region with their transponders engaged, an apparent concession to NATO powers who accuse Russia's air force of endangering aviation by turning off the devices that allow them to be detected by ground radar. Moscow's envoy to NATO told alliance ambassadors that Russian pilots could turn on the cockpit transmitters, known as transponders, if alliance planes did the same. "We are ready to fly with transponders along certain flight trajectories," Russia's ambassador Alexander Grushko said after the NATO-Russia Council, a forum bringing together Russia and the 28 NATO ambassadors. "The aircraft of many countries do fly in the region with their transponders off," Grushko said. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the proposal but said that all jets under NATO command already flew with their transponders on. "Transponders are important, but they are only one element of a broader picture related to air safety. The basic thing is safe behaviour, to fly in a safe and professional way," Stoltenberg said. The proposal comes after two years of several near misses between Western planes, both civilian and military, and Russian jets in the skies above the Baltics that NATO has patrolled since Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. It also comes after several gestures by Russian President Vladimir Putin that seem to aim at defusing East-West tensions despite NATO's summit last weekend in Warsaw. There, the alliance agreed to deploy a multinational force to the Baltics and Poland and to take over a US-built missile shield that Russia sees as hostile. Putin agreed to Wednesday's meeting of the NATO-Russia Council, only the second since mid-2014, while also recently allowing a UN resolution authorising the EU to intercept arms shipments to Libya in the Mediterranean. Putin has talked by telephone US President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Holland in recent days. "Back to the Cold War" The transponders plan, which was raised by Putin during a visit to Finland this month, was put to NATO ambassadors both by Russia's envoy and generals at the meeting at NATO headquarters. Diplomats said there was no detailed discussion. Diplomats told Reuters the Russian proposal appeared to be directed at US military reconnaissance flights that regularly fly through the region, and which Russia has intercepted in what Washington says is an unsafe manner. In one instance in April, Russia sent a fighter plane to intercept a US aircraft approaching its border over the Baltic Sea, accusing the plane of turning off its transponders. It was not immediately clear if US reconnaissance jets have flown with their transponders off in the region. In a sign of the continued strains between Russia and the West, Grushko reiterated Moscow's position that NATO's biggest modernisation since the end of the Cold War is putting Europe's security at risk. NATO denies that, saying its military build-up is a proportionate response to Russia's actions in Ukraine. "The message was very clear. There is no reason for NATO to do what it is doing. The direction in which NATO is moving in military terms is very worrisome," Grushko said. "It takes us back to the Cold War," he said. (Reuters)

Russia offers to fly warplanes more safely over Baltics

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said today he has never faced pressure from Russia to step aside, as US secretary of state John Kerry headed to Moscow seeking to revive stalled peace efforts. 
 
Speaking to NBC News in Damascus, Assad insisted his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and foreign minister Sergei Lavrov had never raised the issue of his departure or a political transition. 
 
&quot;Only the Syrian people define who&#39;s going to be the President, when to come, and when to go. They never said a single word regarding this,&quot; he said. 
 
Assad&#39;s fate is a key question in efforts to bring about a negotiated settlement to Syria&#39;s five-year civil war.&nbsp; 
 
Hopes for the existing peace process rest on the UN-backed blueprint sketched out by the 22-nation, US and Russian-led International Syria Support Group. 
 
Under this road map, signed by both Syria&#39;s ally Iran and Assad&#39;s pro-rebel foe Saudi Arabia, a nationwide ceasefire will precede Geneva-based talks on &quot;political transition&quot;. 
 
But there has been little progress towards a resumption of talks that had been expected to take place this month. 
 
And the prospects for a political transition beginning August, as laid out in the road map, now appear slim. 
 
Kerry was due to arrive later today in Moscow, a close ally of Assad&#39;s government that launched air strikes in support of regime forces last September. 
 
Kerry said before leaving Washington that he would meet Putin &quot;to see if we can somehow advance this (the peace process) in the important ways that people want us to&quot;. Moscow and Washington brokered a landmark partial ceasefire in Syria in February but it has since all but collapsed amid continued heavy fighting. 
 
Kerry&#39;s spokesman John Kirby told reporters his boss was &quot;extremely frustrated&quot; with the failure of peace efforts and &quot;his patience was growing thin&quot;. 
 
In Washington, many observers have criticised Kerry&#39;s outreach to Russia on Syria, arguing he has been strung along by Putin as he seeks to protect his client Assad. 
 
But Kirby insisted the administration is not being naive, and that today&#39;s visit to Moscow, Kerry&#39;s third this year, would &quot;probe the sincerity&quot; of Putin&#39;s promises. 
 
Syria&#39;s conflict began in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government demonstrations and has evolved into a complex multi-front war that has left more than 280,000 dead and forced millions from their homes. 
 
Efforts to bring an end to the war have taken on greater urgency since the emergence of the Islamic State group, which seized control of large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq in mid-2014. 
 
The jihadist group has committed widespread atrocities in areas under its control and organised or inspired a wave of attacks across the Middle East and in Western cities. 
 
A US-led coalition is carrying out air strikes against the jihadists in Syria and Iraq and recent months have seen IS lose significant territory. 
 
The Washington Post reported today that Washington was to offer to cooperate with Russia in joint military action against IS and the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda, Al-Nusra Front. 
 
In Paris before heading to Moscow, Kerry did not deny the report, but refused to discuss the proposal in detail until he had been to the Kremlin. 
 
According to the Post, which cited sections of what it said was a draft agreement, US and Russian commanders would set up a joint command and control centre to direct intensified air strikes against the groups. 
 
Such a deal is likely to face criticism that it amounts to a tacit acceptance of Putin&#39;s efforts to shore up Assad&#39;s regime.&nbsp; 
 
It was her own fault 
In his interview with NBC, Assad also said a US reporter killed in alleged Syrian government bombardment in 2012 was responsible for her own death. 
 
Marie Colvin, a 56-year-old war correspondent working for British newspaper The Sunday Times, died in the rebel-held Baba Amr district of Syria&#39;s third city Homs. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s a war and she came illegally to Syria. She worked with the terrorists, and because she came illegally, she&#39;s been responsible of everything that befall on her,&quot; Assad said, speaking in English. 
 
Asked if she was responsible for her own death, Assad replied &quot;of course&quot;, though he denied that his forces had targeted her. 
 
His comments came days after relatives of Colvin filed a lawsuit in a US court alleging Assad&#39;s regime targeted her to stop her covering government atrocities. 
 
The suit, based on information from captured government documents as well as defectors, claims the Syrian military intercepted Colvin&#39;s communications and unleashed a barrage of rocket fire on her location, killing her and French photographer Remi Ochlik. 
 
(AFP)

'Only the Syrian people define who's going to be the President, when to come, and when to go,' he said

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said today he has never faced pressure from Russia to step aside, as US secretary of state John Kerry headed to Moscow seeking to revive stalled peace efforts. Speaking to NBC News in Damascus, Assad insisted his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and foreign minister Sergei Lavrov had never raised the issue of his departure or a political transition. "Only the Syrian people define who's going to be the President, when to come, and when to go. They never said a single word regarding this," he said. Assad's fate is a key question in efforts to bring about a negotiated settlement to Syria's five-year civil war. Hopes for the existing peace process rest on the UN-backed blueprint sketched out by the 22-nation, US and Russian-led International Syria Support Group. Under this road map, signed by both Syria's ally Iran and Assad's pro-rebel foe Saudi Arabia, a nationwide ceasefire will precede Geneva-based talks on "political transition". But there has been little progress towards a resumption of talks that had been expected to take place this month. And the prospects for a political transition beginning August, as laid out in the road map, now appear slim. Kerry was due to arrive later today in Moscow, a close ally of Assad's government that launched air strikes in support of regime forces last September. Kerry said before leaving Washington that he would meet Putin "to see if we can somehow advance this (the peace process) in the important ways that people want us to". Moscow and Washington brokered a landmark partial ceasefire in Syria in February but it has since all but collapsed amid continued heavy fighting. Kerry's spokesman John Kirby told reporters his boss was "extremely frustrated" with the failure of peace efforts and "his patience was growing thin". In Washington, many observers have criticised Kerry's outreach to Russia on Syria, arguing he has been strung along by Putin as he seeks to protect his client Assad. But Kirby insisted the administration is not being naive, and that today's visit to Moscow, Kerry's third this year, would "probe the sincerity" of Putin's promises. Syria's conflict began in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government demonstrations and has evolved into a complex multi-front war that has left more than 280,000 dead and forced millions from their homes. Efforts to bring an end to the war have taken on greater urgency since the emergence of the Islamic State group, which seized control of large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq in mid-2014. The jihadist group has committed widespread atrocities in areas under its control and organised or inspired a wave of attacks across the Middle East and in Western cities. A US-led coalition is carrying out air strikes against the jihadists in Syria and Iraq and recent months have seen IS lose significant territory. The Washington Post reported today that Washington was to offer to cooperate with Russia in joint military action against IS and the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda, Al-Nusra Front. In Paris before heading to Moscow, Kerry did not deny the report, but refused to discuss the proposal in detail until he had been to the Kremlin. According to the Post, which cited sections of what it said was a draft agreement, US and Russian commanders would set up a joint command and control centre to direct intensified air strikes against the groups. Such a deal is likely to face criticism that it amounts to a tacit acceptance of Putin's efforts to shore up Assad's regime. It was her own fault In his interview with NBC, Assad also said a US reporter killed in alleged Syrian government bombardment in 2012 was responsible for her own death. Marie Colvin, a 56-year-old war correspondent working for British newspaper The Sunday Times, died in the rebel-held Baba Amr district of Syria's third city Homs. "It's a war and she came illegally to Syria. She worked with the terrorists, and because she came illegally, she's been responsible of everything that befall on her," Assad said, speaking in English. Asked if she was responsible for her own death, Assad replied "of course", though he denied that his forces had targeted her. His comments came days after relatives of Colvin filed a lawsuit in a US court alleging Assad's regime targeted her to stop her covering government atrocities. The suit, based on information from captured government documents as well as defectors, claims the Syrian military intercepted Colvin's communications and unleashed a barrage of rocket fire on her location, killing her and French photographer Remi Ochlik. (AFP)

Have never faced pressure from Russia to step aside: Assad

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Russia&#39;s Vladimir Putin spoke on the telephone today and both expressed a determination to revive mutual relations and fight against terrorism, Erdogan&#39;s office said in a statement. 
 
The call was arranged after Erdogan expressed regret in a letter to Putin on Monday over Turkey&#39;s downing of a Russian warplane last year. 
 
The two also agreed during their call to meet in person, Erdogan&#39;s office said, adding that &quot;necessary steps&quot; should be taken to revive relations. 
 
(Reuters)

A phone call was arranged after Erdogan expressed regret in a letter to Putin over downing a Russian warplane last year

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Russia's Vladimir Putin spoke on the telephone today and both expressed a determination to revive mutual relations and fight against terrorism, Erdogan's office said in a statement. The call was arranged after Erdogan expressed regret in a letter to Putin on Monday over Turkey's downing of a Russian warplane last year. The two also agreed during their call to meet in person, Erdogan's office said, adding that "necessary steps" should be taken to revive relations. (Reuters)

Turkey and Russia agree to revive mutual relations

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has written to Russian leader Vladimir Putin to apologise over the shooting down of a Russian air force jet by Turkey&#39;s military, the Kremlin said today. 
 
After the Russian jet was shot down in November last year near the Syrian-Turkish border, Russia imposed trade restrictions on Ankara. Putin had said they would not be lifted unless Erdogan apologised over the incident. 
 
There was no immediate comment from Ankara. 
 
In a statement, the Kremlin said Putin had received a letter from Erdogan &quot;in which the Turkish leader expressed his desire to resolve the situation connected to the downing of a Russian military aircraft.&quot; 
 
&quot;The letter states, in particular, that Russia is a friend to Turkey and a strategic partner, with which the Turkish authorities would not wish to spoil relations,&quot; the Kremlin statement said. 
 
It cited Erdogan as saying in the letter: &quot;I want to once again express my sympathy and deep condolences to the family of the Russian pilot who died and I say: &#39;I&#39;m sorry.&#39;&quot; 
 
The Turkish Lira firmed to 2.9330 against the US Dollar from 2.9430 beforehand after the Kremlin said Erdogan had expressed his regret. 
 
(Reuters)

Russia imposed trade restrictions on Ankara after the incident and had said they will not be lifted unless Erdogan apologised

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has written to Russian leader Vladimir Putin to apologise over the shooting down of a Russian air force jet by Turkey's military, the Kremlin said today. After the Russian jet was shot down in November last year near the Syrian-Turkish border, Russia imposed trade restrictions on Ankara. Putin had said they would not be lifted unless Erdogan apologised over the incident. There was no immediate comment from Ankara. In a statement, the Kremlin said Putin had received a letter from Erdogan "in which the Turkish leader expressed his desire to resolve the situation connected to the downing of a Russian military aircraft." "The letter states, in particular, that Russia is a friend to Turkey and a strategic partner, with which the Turkish authorities would not wish to spoil relations," the Kremlin statement said. It cited Erdogan as saying in the letter: "I want to once again express my sympathy and deep condolences to the family of the Russian pilot who died and I say: 'I'm sorry.'" The Turkish Lira firmed to 2.9330 against the US Dollar from 2.9430 beforehand after the Kremlin said Erdogan had expressed his regret. (Reuters)

Kremlin says Turkey apologised to Putin over plane incident

Russia and China signed over 30 cooperation deals on June 25 as Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping met in Beijing. 
 
The deals covered areas such as economy and trade, foreign affairs, infrastructure, technology and innovation, agriculture, finance, energy, media, Internet, and sports, China&#39;s semi-official Xinhua news agency reported. 
 
After bilateral talks, Putin said both sides were moving towards working on 58 joint initiatives worth 50 billion dollars. 
 
Putin&#39;s aide told journalists earlier this week that energy, aerospace, North Korea, and Syria were some of the issues due to be discussed between the two leaders during the visit. 
 
Putin arrived in Beijing after a visit to Tashkent, where he attended the 16th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

After bilateral talks, Putin said both sides were moving towards working on 58 joint initiatives worth 50 billion dollars

Russia and China signed over 30 cooperation deals on June 25 as Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping met in Beijing. The deals covered areas such as economy and trade, foreign affairs, infrastructure, technology and innovation, agriculture, finance, energy, media, Internet, and sports, China's semi-official Xinhua news agency reported. After bilateral talks, Putin said both sides were moving towards working on 58 joint initiatives worth 50 billion dollars. Putin's aide told journalists earlier this week that energy, aerospace, North Korea, and Syria were some of the issues due to be discussed between the two leaders during the visit. Putin arrived in Beijing after a visit to Tashkent, where he attended the 16th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit. (Reuters)

Russia, China eye closer friendship sign strategic agreements

The IMF has warned Brexit could deal the British economy a &quot;negative and substantial&quot; blow as Vladimir Putin suggested David Cameron was trying to &quot;blackmail&quot; Europe with the EU referendum. 
 
Meanwhile The Times newspaper came out&nbsp;Saturday&nbsp;in favour of Britain staying in the European Union, five days ahead of the vote on whether the UK should stay in the bloc or leave. 
 
The pound rallied as investors leaned towards a Remain outcome from&nbsp;Thursday&#39;s&nbsp;closely-contested referendum. 
 
IMF warns of contagion&nbsp; 
 
With less than a week until the referendum, the International Monetary Fund warned that a so-called Brexit would harm the British economy while &quot;contagion effects&quot; could hit markets worldwide. 
 
In the worst-case scenario, the UK economy would sink into recession next year and overall economic output would be 5.6 per cent lower than otherwise forecast by 2019, with unemployment rising back above six per cent, it said today. 
 
&quot;While there is much uncertainty about the precise economic effects of an exit from the EU, they are likely negative and substantial,&quot; the Washington-based global crisis lender revealed in its annual British economic check-up. 
 
&quot;An exit would precipitate a protracted period of heightened uncertainty that could weigh on confidence and investment and increase financial market volatility.&quot; 
 
In addition, &quot;contagion effects could result in spillovers to regional and global markets, although the primary impact would be felt domestically&quot;. 
 
While in a &quot;limited impact&quot; scenario the IMF said the economy would only lose 1.4 per cent from the current outlook by 2019, the report gave one of the starkest pictures yet of the impact of Brexit. 
 
Putin wades in&nbsp; 
 
Meanwhile Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested British Prime Minister David Cameron had called the referendum to &quot;blackmail&quot; and &quot;scare&quot; Europe. 
 
&quot;Why has he set up this referendum? To blackmail Europe? Or to scare it? What is the purpose if he himself is against Britain leaving the EU,&quot; Putin said today during a meeting with representatives of news agencies. 
 
&quot;Some experts say a Brexit will be to the detriment of Europe. But others say that the EU will be more stable,&quot; Putin said, pointing to the example of British fishermen. 
 
&quot;They explain how hard it is to live with the restrictions on fishing. But there are advantages in other sectors.&nbsp;If you consider all these things, it&#39;s very complicated to choose,&quot; he added. 
 
The What UK Thinks average of the last six opinion polls puts the Remain camp on 52 per cent to 48 per cent for the Leave campaign, excluding undecided voters. 
 
Times&#39; &#39;pragmatic&#39; Remain case 
&nbsp; 
The Times swung behind the Remain camp&nbsp;on Saturday, in opposition to its stablemate The Sun, Britain&#39;s biggest-selling newspaper, which is backing a Leave vote. 
 
&quot;The best outcome of next week&#39;s referendum would be a new alliance of sovereign EU nations dedicated to free trade and reform, led by Britain,&quot; it said in a 2,000-word editorial. 
 
The Times said voting to stay was a &quot;pragmatic rather than enthusiastic choice&quot;. 
 
&quot;Brexit is unquestionably economically riskier than a vote to remain,&quot; the daily said. 
 
&quot;On balance we believe Britain would be better off leading a renewed drive for reform within the EU rather than starting afresh outside it.&quot; 
 
The pound rallied&nbsp;Friday&nbsp;as investors swung their bets towards Britain voting to stay in the EU, in part due to the three-day suspension of campaigning over Cox&#39;s murder. 
 
&quot;The shocking news was seen, at least on the margin, as hurting public sentiment toward the Brexit move,&quot; said Omer Esiner of Commonwealth Foreign Exchange. 
 
Long-running fears of a pro-Brexit vote had been hammering the pound, and they were heightened in recent weeks as the &quot;Leave&quot; campaign pulled ahead in the polls. 
 
The pound surged about one per cent against the dollar to $1.4348. It was up 0.5 per cent against the euro at 78.62 pence. 
 
Meanwhile French National Front leader Marine Le Pen, enthused by the British referendum, addressed a 2,000-strong Vienna rally of far-right European &quot;patriots&quot;. 
 
The elites of Europe &quot;are scared that the United Kingdom is regaining its liberty, its freedom to trade with whom it pleases,&quot; she said. 
(AFP)

'While there is much uncertainty about the precise economic effects of an exit from the EU, they are likely negative and substantial'

The IMF has warned Brexit could deal the British economy a "negative and substantial" blow as Vladimir Putin suggested David Cameron was trying to "blackmail" Europe with the EU referendum. Meanwhile The Times newspaper came out Saturday in favour of Britain staying in the European Union, five days ahead of the vote on whether the UK should stay in the bloc or leave. The pound rallied as investors leaned towards a Remain outcome from Thursday's closely-contested referendum. IMF warns of contagion With less than a week until the referendum, the International Monetary Fund warned that a so-called Brexit would harm the British economy while "contagion effects" could hit markets worldwide. In the worst-case scenario, the UK economy would sink into recession next year and overall economic output would be 5.6 per cent lower than otherwise forecast by 2019, with unemployment rising back above six per cent, it said today. "While there is much uncertainty about the precise economic effects of an exit from the EU, they are likely negative and substantial," the Washington-based global crisis lender revealed in its annual British economic check-up. "An exit would precipitate a protracted period of heightened uncertainty that could weigh on confidence and investment and increase financial market volatility." In addition, "contagion effects could result in spillovers to regional and global markets, although the primary impact would be felt domestically". While in a "limited impact" scenario the IMF said the economy would only lose 1.4 per cent from the current outlook by 2019, the report gave one of the starkest pictures yet of the impact of Brexit. Putin wades in Meanwhile Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested British Prime Minister David Cameron had called the referendum to "blackmail" and "scare" Europe. "Why has he set up this referendum? To blackmail Europe? Or to scare it? What is the purpose if he himself is against Britain leaving the EU," Putin said today during a meeting with representatives of news agencies. "Some experts say a Brexit will be to the detriment of Europe. But others say that the EU will be more stable," Putin said, pointing to the example of British fishermen. "They explain how hard it is to live with the restrictions on fishing. But there are advantages in other sectors. If you consider all these things, it's very complicated to choose," he added. The What UK Thinks average of the last six opinion polls puts the Remain camp on 52 per cent to 48 per cent for the Leave campaign, excluding undecided voters. Times' 'pragmatic' Remain case The Times swung behind the Remain camp on Saturday, in opposition to its stablemate The Sun, Britain's biggest-selling newspaper, which is backing a Leave vote. "The best outcome of next week's referendum would be a new alliance of sovereign EU nations dedicated to free trade and reform, led by Britain," it said in a 2,000-word editorial. The Times said voting to stay was a "pragmatic rather than enthusiastic choice". "Brexit is unquestionably economically riskier than a vote to remain," the daily said. "On balance we believe Britain would be better off leading a renewed drive for reform within the EU rather than starting afresh outside it." The pound rallied Friday as investors swung their bets towards Britain voting to stay in the EU, in part due to the three-day suspension of campaigning over Cox's murder. "The shocking news was seen, at least on the margin, as hurting public sentiment toward the Brexit move," said Omer Esiner of Commonwealth Foreign Exchange. Long-running fears of a pro-Brexit vote had been hammering the pound, and they were heightened in recent weeks as the "Leave" campaign pulled ahead in the polls. The pound surged about one per cent against the dollar to $1.4348. It was up 0.5 per cent against the euro at 78.62 pence. Meanwhile French National Front leader Marine Le Pen, enthused by the British referendum, addressed a 2,000-strong Vienna rally of far-right European "patriots". The elites of Europe "are scared that the United Kingdom is regaining its liberty, its freedom to trade with whom it pleases," she said. (AFP)

Brexit could harm British economy and hit markets worldwide, IMF warns

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