US Has No Agreement to Conduct Joint Airstrikes With Russia in Syria - DoS

The United States has no agreement to conduct joint airstrikes with the Russian military in Syria, US Department of State spokesperson John Kirby told Sputnik on Friday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that Moscow offered Washington to jointly plan and conduct airstrikes against al-Nusra Front, as well as other illegal armed groups in Syria.

"There is no agreement to conduct joint airstrikes with the Russians in Syria," Kirby stated. "What we are discussing with our Russian counterparts — in keeping with the ISSG [International Syria Support Group] communique last week in Vienna — are proposals for a sustainable mechanism to better monitor and enforce the cessation of hostilities."

Washington and Moscow have not yet agreed upon a mechanism to hold accountable violators of the Syrian cessation of hostilities (COH) agreement, Kirby told Sputnik on Friday.

"As the ISSG [International Syria Support Group] made clear, there must be a mechanism for resolving violations — a mechanism agreed upon and endorsed by the ISSG," Kirby said. "Proposals for such a mechanism to hold violators of the COH are what we are discussing with Russia. None of those proposals have yet been agreed upon."

Kirby explained that enforcement of the Syrian cessation of hostilities must be implemented by all sides, and any violator of the ceasefire terms should be held to account.