The White House on Monday stood by Secretary of State John Kerry’s controversial remarks that Bashar Assad should be included in negotiations to reach a political transition in Syria.
The comments caused a stir because Kerry veered from the standard U.S. line that Assad has lost all legitimacy over his handling of the civil war in Syria and must go.
“We have to negotiate in the end,” Kerry told CBS News Sunday in response to a question on whether the U.S. is willing to negotiate with the brutal Syrian leader.
Kerry argued that the time has come for the U.S. and other countries to begin exploring ways to revive the diplomatic process to end the bloody civil war in Syria that has left 200,000 people dead and created a safe haven for the Islamic State and other terrorist groups.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest backed up that argument when asked about Kerry’s comments at his daily briefing with reporters.
“He was referring to the fact that the Assad regime would have to be at the negotiating table with elements of the moderate opposition to try to broker an arrangement about the political transition in Syria,” Earnest said.
Earlier Monday, Assad brushed aside Kerry’s remarks as a declaration from the “outside” that “do not concern us.”
Assad, in comments broadcast on Syrian state television, was terse but dismissive: “We are still hearing the declarations and we should wait for actions and then decide.”
Earnest said he could not understand Assad’s motivation in making those comments, considering the series of atrocities he has committed against his own people.
“What I can tell you is that the U.S. is going to work actively with the international community to try to bring about some resolution to the political situation in Syria,” he said. “But what is understandably at the top of our priority list is dealing with the threat posed by extremists and the chaos right now and there is no question that Assad is responsible for that chaos.”
