Trump’s advisor: 'decisive discussions' with Russia on Syria are imperative
Herbert McMaster, national security adviser to the US president, believes the time has come for “tough discussions” with Moscow on the topic of its support of the Syrian government, and also Russia’s “subversive activity” in Europe. Moscow’s support of the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad has led to a civil war and a crisis which has spread not only to Iraq and other neighboring countries, but also to Europe, the security adviser said in a broadcast of ABC News on Sunday, April 16.
He added that the talks must be carried out by the US Secretary of State, and called the recent visit of US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Russia “perfectly timed”.
According to him, Russian support of Assad’s “horrible regime” and his direct involvement in the Syrian conflict “is something that has to be drawn into question, as well as Russia’s subversive actions in Europe”.
In light of this, McMaster said that areas of cooperation must be found with Russia, where the interests of both countries align and joint results can be achieved.
Rex Tillerson, during his visit to Moscow on Wednesday for negotiations with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, and during his meeting with Vladimir Putin, focused primarily on the situation in Syria. After the meetings he reported that the positions of the two countries still differ on many points.
In particular, the US, like the majority of Western states and also Arab states and other countries in the Middle East, says that current Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and those closest to him cannot have any kind of role in the new Syrian government, which must be formed through a peaceful resolution process. Russia, which supports Assad’s authoritarian government, rejects this condition.