Russia, US Unlikely to Reach Deal on Syria Until End of Obama's Tenure

Russia and the United States will barely reach an agreement on the Syrian issue until the incumbent US President Barack Obama is in office, a senior Russian lawmaker said Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — At the same time, he added that Washington's position in regard to Syria would not change significantly even after the end of Obama's tenure, because the US presidential candidates, namely Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, have quite hardline approaches in regard to foreign policy.

"I am afraid that we are hostages of US [presidential] election campaign and we will not be able to reach some breakthrough agreements between Russia and the United States [on the Syrian issue] until its end," Konstantin Kosachev, head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the upper house of the Russian parliament, told RT broadcaster in an interview.

Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with government forces loyal to President Bashar Assad fighting numerous opposition groups, as well as terrorist formations, such as Daesh, which is banned in Russia and the United States.

Both Moscow and Washington made a lot of efforts to reach an agreement that would contribute to the settlement of the Syrian conflict. The most recent attempt was made in September, when Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry announced a new peace plan.

The deal was later shattered by numerous violations, which resulted in intensified fighting between the Syrian government and militants in the city of Aleppo. The Syrian government later announced an end to the ceasefire regime, while Russia said that the United States failed to fulfill its obligation to separate terrorist groups from moderate opposition.

On October 3, State Department deputy spokesperson John Kirby announced in a press release that Washington is cutting off participation in bilateral channels with Russia on sustaining a ceasefire agreement in Syria.

The US presidential election is set for November 8.