The United States and Russia are united in the search for an end to the Syrian crisis, say US Secretary of State John Kerry.
In a press conference yesterday in Paris, Kerry said that as the date for next week's talks, termed the `Geneva II Conference' nears, the two countries have talked and agreed on a number of issues to ensure an end to the crisis.
As far as the Syrian Peace talks are concerned Kerry said US and Russia have looked at the Path forward, after bilateraly settling in full agreement on a number of points, including.
1) violent deaths and needless suffereing must come to an end.
2) That they will do all they can to ensure that the bloodshed and wastage of human lives must come to an end.
3) That resolution must be peaceful and there will be no military solution.
4) that the humanitarian crisis is affecting not just syrians but their neighbours.
5) that they will make their best efforts, from the time it was first announced last spring through now, to continue to search for ways in other to bring the parties to the negotiating table.
He said that both US and Russia understand that the process will be difficult and might take sometime, but they will begin and begin now and will ensure the implementation of the communique release at Geneva I.
Kerry said the US will continue to consult very closely with their international partners including Ambassador Brahimi (of Algeria) and their Russian counterparts.
He said bringing the two sides together in order to begin this conversation is critical and that they will exercise their best efforts in order to do that, in the hope that the meeting will be the beginning of an end to the conflict.
Kerry said the involvement of the US and Russia in the search for a peaceful solution is not aimed at achieving a predetermined outcome along American or Russian lines. He said it will be up to Syrians to decide on their own future.
He said they have discussed issues that can enhance success in Geneva. And that success is defind by a good beginning, not in the beginning by the final outcome.
To this end, he said the US and Russia have discussed and are in agreement that they will work to see that some kind of negotiated settlement as good starting point to ending the conflict.
And he said "by-the-way, we recognise there has been abuses on both sides", and that they have both indulged in abuses that are not acceptable.
He said there should be no more delay in international involvement to ending the airial bombardment of women and children and the use of starvation as a weapon of war.
He said they are considering ways to encourage a ceasefire - maybe a localised ceasefire, and prisoner exchange.
With respected to cezsefire, he said the opposition have said they are prepared to consider it if the regime accepts it and to compile a list of their syrian forces prisoners if that condition is mutually acceptable too.
"It is our hope that in the face to face meeting of the regime and the opposition will be the beginning of the end to this conflict", the Secretary of State said.
The Geneva II Peace Conference on syria holds on Wednesday January 22, 2014.
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