Kerry says talks with Russian FM have been constructive

US secretary of state John Kerry and Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov have agreed to push for an international conference aimed at ending Syria’s civil war.

After meeting the UN envoy on Syria in Geneva, where they are trying to confirm a Russian plan to remove Syria’s chemical weapons and avert US military action, Mr Lavrov and Mr Kerry said they agreed to try and make progress on a broader effort to end a conflict that has divided the Middle East and world powers.

They would meet again in about two weeks, around September 28th during the UN General Assembly in New York, and hoped progress in Geneva in the coming day on a chemical weapons disarmament deal would help revive plans for peace conference.

“We are committed to trying to work together, beginning with this initiative on the chemical weapons, in hopes that those efforts could pay off and bring peace and stability to a war-torn part of the world,” Mr Kerry told a joint news briefing.