US, Russia Agree Syria Needs ‘Managed Transition’, John Kerry Says

The United States and Russia agree on some “fundamental principles" for Syria, including the need for a “managed transition" in the war-torn country, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday.

Kerry spoke in an interview on MSNBC in which he also said that the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group “needs to be taken on” but Russia has to stop supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as there can be no peace in Syria with him at the helm.

He also called on the Syrian leader to step aside.

“If he were to do that, then you could stop the violence and quickly move to a [managed transition],” Kerry said. 

He also said that US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin are both "looking for a way forward" in Syria. The two leaders met on the sidelines of the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York late on Monday.

The talks between Obama and Putin were "genuinely constructive”, according to Kerry.

He added that he will meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday.

“And we are looking for a way to try to get to a point where we can manage a transition and have agreement on the outcome and you could resolve it," Kerry said.