Nice terror attack: Obama offers Putin joint plan to smash ISIS

The US reportedly wants to set up a joint command centre with Russia in Jordan to smash Islamic State.

Shake on it: Vladimir Putin greets John Kerry in the Kremlin yesterday.

US Secreary of State John Kerry met Russia’s President Vladimir Putin yesterday to offer him closer military co-operation in the hope of salvaging the stalled Syria peace process.

Ahead of the meeting, pessimistic US officials were careful to say it was not a last chance for ­diplomacy to work, but stressed they were running out of patience with Moscow.

The proposal, as revealed in a leaked document, was an offer for the US military to work with Russia against Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra. In exchange, Russia would have to convince or strongarm its ally, Bashar al-Assad, into grounding his own planes and halting attacks on civilians and moderate opposition groups.

GRAPHIC — Islamic State inspired attacks

The meeting broke up at 1am (8am AEST) yesterday after three hours of closed-door talks.

“The secretary expressed concern about repeated violations of the cessation of hostilities by the Syrian regime,” US spokesman John Kirby said.

“The two also discussed the need to need to increase pressure on terrorist groups like Daesh and the al-Qa’ida affiliate in Syria, Jabhat al-Nusra.”

“Diplomatic efforts could not continue indefinitely”, however, in the absence of concrete, near-term steps, Mr Kirby reported Mr Kerry as saying.

Speaking before the Kremlin meeting, Mr Putin gave little away.

“I would like to note our mutual effort in the settlement of conflicts that we deem important to resolve,” he said. “My last conversation with President Obama has convinced me that we are indeed striving not only to establish a process of co-operation but also to achieve important results.”

Mr Kerry said Barack Obama and he believed the US and Russia were in a position to make “an enormous difference” in the course of events not just in Syria but also in Ukraine.

Last night, Mr Kerry was to “explore initiatives in more detail” with his immediate counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, but the diplomatic words could not conceal US concern.

Washington said two major ­issues to be addressed were Assad’s ceasefire violations and al-Nusra’s growing role.

“We need a solution to this that addresses both of these problems,” a senior US official said. “If we cannot get to a solution that resolves both of those problems, we’re going to be in a very different place, and the reality is that time is short here.”

US officials downplayed the significance of the military offer, reported by The Washington Post, arguing they would have gone after al-Nusra anyway. Critics of US policy are bound to see any offer to aid Mr Putin’s campaign in Syria — even against jihadists — as a victory for the Kremlin’s intervention in Syria.

There was no sign in Damascus that Assad feels under any pressure to agree to talks on a new government, the next stage in the process if a ceasefire is restored.

Speaking to NBC News in Dam­ascus, Assad insisted Mr Putin and Mr Lavrov had never raised the issue of his departure or a political transition. “Only the Syrian people define who’s going to be the president, when to come, and when to go.

“They never said a single word regarding this,” he said.

Moscow and Washington have called for a nationwide ceasefire and Geneva-based talks on a political transition. A ceasefire brokered in February — which did not include ISIS or al-Nusra — has since all but collapsed. Russian forces are fighting in support of Assad’s regime against various rebel factions while a US-led coalition focuses on Islamic State.

The Post, citing a draft proposal from the US, reported the US and Russia could set up a joint command and control centre in Jordan. This would direct intensified airstrikes against al-Nusra, which is mainly fighting Assad’s forces. In return, Moscow would limit its strikes to agreed targets and the Syrian air force would halt attacks in designated areas.

AFP