Summary
Top diplomats from Russia, the U.S., Saudi Arabia and Turkey held talks in a frosty atmosphere Friday on how to end the Syrian conflict, with the sides sharply at odds on the future of Bashar Assad.
At an impromptu press conference with Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh before the four-way talks began, Lavrov reiterated the need to ramp up the fight against "terrorism" in Syria and the need for a political solution.
On September 30, Russia launched a bombing campaign in Syria, which has shifted the dynamics of the brutal four-and-a-half year war -- allowing Assad's battle-weary forces to go on the offensive and overshadowing a US-led coalition bombing ISIS.
Russia has been frantically trying to get the U.S. and its coalition partners to cooperate with its bombing campaign in Syria, and Putin on Thursday stressed the need for "joint work" to defeat "terrorism" in Syria.
Assad's fate remains a major stumbling block for ending the conflict in Syria.
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