{Nine-nation meeting in Switzerland fails to agree on any concrete action to stop the violence in Syria.}<\/p>\n
A new round of diplomatic talks has failed once again to break a tense deadlock on how to end fighting in Syria, as a nine-nation meeting in the Swiss city of Lausanne did not agree on any concrete action to stop the violence.<\/p>\n
With clashes still raging in Aleppo, Saturday’s talks, convened by US Secretary of State John Kerry, concluded after more than four hours without any joint statement from the participating countries.<\/p>\n
Kerry was seeking a new path to peace after failing to secure a ceasefire in direct talks with Russia amid increasing international outrage over the Russian and Syrian bombardment of Aleppo’s rebel-held east.<\/p>\n
Kerry hosted Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and seven foreign ministers from the region, as well as top diplomats from the United Nations, only weeks after the collapse of a US-Russia brokered truce.<\/p>\n
After the meeting, Kerry told reporters that the talks were “constructive”, but admitted that the parties had failed to agree on any concrete action.<\/p>\n
He also said the next contact between sides at the talks would be on Monday to discuss future steps.<\/p>\n
Lavrov, on the other hand, told Russian news agencies that the countries discussed several “interesting ideas”. <\/p>\n
“I think Lavrov and Kerry were trying to put a brave face on what happened here,” Al Jazeera’s diplomatic editor James Bays, reporting from Lausanne, said. <\/p>\n
“They came to the table again to sort out the situation in morthern Syria, particularly the bombardment of Aleppo, and once again diplomacy failed the people of Aleppo.<\/p>\n
“No breakthrough, no concrete developments at all from these talks.” <\/p>\n
Ahead of the talks, Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s UN ambassador, said that a key aim of the Lausanne meeting was to get countries that support “moderate” opposition groups to use their influence to work for a new ceasefire.<\/p>\n
Kerry and Lavrov were joined in Lausanne by Staffan de Mistura, the UN Syria envoy, along with the top diplomats of Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar – all backers of Syrian opposition forces.<\/p>\n
Iran, a key supporter of the Syrian government, also sent its foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, to take part in the talks.<\/p>\n
London meeting<\/p>\n
European countries were not represented at the meeting, which was held in a luxury hotel on Lake Geneva.<\/p>\n
But French officials confirmed that foreign ministers of like-minded nations planned to meet Kerry in London on Sunday to discuss the Syria crisis.<\/p>\n
Al Jazeera’s Bays said ministers from the UK, France and Germany are expected to discuss what happened in Lausanne, but also “talk about some wider issues”.<\/p>\n
“The UK and France have been discussing military options. We know that the US under President Obama are reluctant to look at the military option,” our correspondent said.<\/p>\n
“We know France has been pushing for a war crimes investigation in to Syrian government and Russia’s aerial bombardment – those things will now be discussed in London.”<\/p>\n
{{Aleppo bombardment}}<\/p>\n
Several major international efforts have failed to secure a political solution to Syria’s brutal war, which has cost more than 400,000 lives since 2011.<\/p>\n
Russia and the US reached a ceasefire agreement last month, before it quickly collapsed amid a Moscow-backed Syrian assault on the rebel-held part of Aleppo.<\/p>\n
The offensive has prompted accusations of potential war crimes from Western countries.<\/p>\n
More than 370 people, including nearly 70 children, have been killed in Syrian government and Russian bombardment of east Aleppo since September 22, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).<\/p>\n
Before Saturday’s talks were set to begin, dozens of overnight air strikes struck east Aleppo, the SOHR said on Friday.<\/p>\n
Three hospitals in Aleppo were hit by suspected Russian air strikes on Friday, killing seven people, Al Jazeera has learned.<\/p>\n
The latest bombardment has prompted four leading charities to call for a ceasefire in Aleppo.<\/p>\n
The nongovernmental organisations issued on Saturday a joint plea “to establish a ceasefire of at least 72 hours in east Aleppo”, where an estimated 250,000 people are living under bombardment siege.<\/p>\n
“This will allow the sick and wounded to be evacuated, and for food and medical aid to enter the besieged area,” said a statement from one of the charities, Save the Children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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