REPORT: US says Russia must stop Syrian stonewalling at peace talks -...

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Syria's government delegation has been "stonewalling every step of the way" in Geneva peace talks and Washington expects Russia to pressure them to engage seriously in the peace process, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.

"We hope and trust that because the Russians believe in a political solution, a diplomatic solution, they will urge the regime to engage in a serious and constructive way," the official said. "The regime hasn't done so yet, that speaks for itself."

Earlier, the Russian foreign minister has accused the United States of using Syria peace talks to seek "regime change" in the country.

Sergei Lavrov said a transitional governing body must not be the sole focus of the talks in Geneva, which are "going in circles." He spoke in Moscow on Friday following a meeting with his German counterpart.

The comments came a day after senior U.S. and Russian officials met in Geneva with U.N. mediator Lakhdar Brahimi in an effort to save the faltering talks.

This as Syria's opposition will not place conditions on the third round of peace talks in Geneva following two rounds of negotiations which have made no progress, opposition spokesman Louay Safi said on Friday.

"We are not putting conditions in the face of a third round. But so far we are saying we have not reached results," Safi told reporters.

This comes as International mediator Lakhdar Brahimi plans to take Syrian peace talks into a third round, an opposition official said on Friday.

US Secretary of State Kerry:

US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Friday that President Barack Obama has asked for possible new policy options on Syria given the worsening humanitarian situation there.

"He has asked all of us to think about various options that may or may not exist. The answer to the question: have they been presented? No, they have not. But that evaluation, by necessity, given the circumstances, is taking place at this time," Kerry told reporters during a visit to Beijing.

"And when these options are ripe and when the president calls for it, there will undoubtedly be some discussion about them."

OPCW:

Ekokem AB of Finland and Veolia of France have won contracts to destroy part of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile, the global watchdog OPCW said on Friday.

The Hague-based Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, which is overseeing the destruction process, has earmarked up to 40 million euros ($55 million) for the commercial processing of 500 tonnes of industrial chemicals and millions of litres of toxic waste.

REUTERS/AP

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