Summary
Russia wants to mend ties with the United States but cannot do so while Barack Obama's administration backs economic sanctions against Moscow for its role in the conflict in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was quoted on Thursday as saying.
Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin are due to meet U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry next week to discuss the conflicts in Ukraine and in Syria.
Lavrov told La Repubblica that combined Russian, U.S. and Arab forces currently in Syria were enough to defeat ISIS militants, but a coalition was not possible without agreement on the future of Assad.
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