Paris – John Kerry US Secretary of State was in Paris Sunday to discuss Syria, Yemen, Ukraine and migration with European foreign ministers.
The meeting comes ahead of UN-sponsored Syria peace talks in Geneva with Bashar al-Assad’s government declaring that calls for the his departure were a “red line” and the opposition insisting he must go.
The Paris meeting allowed Kerry the chance to meet French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault for the first time in his new job, although Ayrault was already on the international diplomatic circuit when he was prime minister from 2012-2014.
The foreign affairs ministers of Germany, Britain and Italy were also present, along with European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherina.
With those Syrian opposition forces invited already in Geneva and government representatives arriving Sunday, hopes of a truce were at the top of the agenda in Paris.
Chief opposition negotiator Mohammad Alloush said that a proposed transitional period “should start with the fall, or death, of Bashar al-Assad”.
The Paris meeting was also expected to discuss the wave of migrants arriving in Europe, in part due to the conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan.
The spread of IS’s influence in Libya may also come up.

Source: NEWS AGENCIES, 13 March 2016