Politics

Russia Presses Europe to Break With Trump and Help Rebuild Syria

  • Summit with France, Germany held up amid power-sharing dispute
  • Alternative to Assad is throat-slitting jihadists: adviser
Who Is Putin, And What Does He Want?
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Russia is urging Germany and France to break ranks with their American ally and help rebuild Syria so that refugees can go home, a senior adviser to the Russian government said.

There’s little prospect of a deal with the U.S., which is now vowing to keep troops in Syria until Iran withdraws, Vitaly Naumkin said in an interview. Russia is instead focused on efforts to organize a Syria summit in Turkey with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron. The plan is being held up by European demands for a transition away from Bashar al-Assad’s rule.