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ΑρχικήEnglishKerry Says Brussels Attacks Renew Urgency for U.S.-Russia Efforts in Mideast

Kerry Says Brussels Attacks Renew Urgency for U.S.-Russia Efforts in Mideast

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By NEIL MacFARQUHAR, New York Times

Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday that the terrorist attacks in Brussels this week had given renewed urgency to efforts by the United States and Russia to address various Middle East crises, despite differences between the two countries.

At the start of talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergey V. Lavrov, Mr. Kerry said that some progress had been made in Syria, but that a further reduction in violence and an increased flow in humanitarian aid were needed.

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“Events in Brussels underscored to all of us the urgency of every country that has the ability to make a difference to end this evil scourge that comes from Daesh and violent insurgency,” Mr. Kerry said, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State.

The cease-fire agreement hammered out through Russian and American efforts in Syria starting in February was shaky but holding, said Mr. Kerry, who is scheduled to meet with President Vladimir V. Putin later in the day.

“There has been a fragile but nevertheless beneficial reduction in violence,” he said, which allowed for the first significant delivery of humanitarian aid.

Mr. Lavrov said that, aside from seeking further progress in Syria, the talks were likely to focus on other Middle East violence, as well as on the conflict in Ukraine.

Neither Ukraine nor Russia seems to be showing much enthusiasm for putting in place the final provisions of the Minsk cease-fire agreements, which ended the worst fighting between government forces and the Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine.

It was Mr. Kerry’s third visit to Moscow since May. Although the two men have a certain friendly rapport, they have not bridged serious differences on Syria, notably the outline for a political transition away from the government led by President Bashar al-Assad.

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Russia deployed its military in Syria in September for five months to shore up Mr. Assad’s rule.

In the brief exchange before their talks, Mr. Kerry offered Mr. Lavrov best wishes for his recent birthday, when he turned 66, saying he hoped it meant the Russian minister would come to the talks with “extra wisdom.”

Mr. Lavrov responded by noting that he still lagged behind Mr. Kerry, 72, when it came to birthdays.

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