by Stephen Lendman

During an informal meeting among BRICS countries at the G-20 summit in Antalya, Turkey, Putin said “(w)e all understand perfectly well that coping with the terrorist threat and helping millions of people who have lost their homes, is possible only by combining the efforts of the entire world community” united against a common scourge.

“As for the threat of terrorism, we have all seen the horror that took place in Paris. We sympathize with the people affected. We always stand for joining efforts to effectively deal with the terrorist threat.”

Putin and Obama met for a short 20-minute discussion on the sidelines of the summit. No details were revealed on what they said. Earlier they exchanged comments during an official photo-op.

Ahead of summit discussions, a suspected jihadist blew himself up in Gaziantep, Turkey, near the Syrian border, during a police raid injuring four officers. The incident followed clashes between Islamic militants and Turkish soldiers nearby.

Separately on November 13, follow-up talks after late October ones on Syria took place in Vienna. Eighteen countries plus EU and UN representatives participated.

Syria was excluded from discussing its own status and future. It has final say on anything agreed on.

According Sergey Lavrov, government and non-terrorist opposition representatives will meet no later than January 1, 2016. UN envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura will help decide who’s attending.

Work will proceed on drafting a new constitution and plan for new elections within 18 months. “This will be a Syrian-led process,” Lavrov explained. They alone will decide the nation’s future with no outside interference tolerated.

Efforts will be made to work toward a ceasefire, excluding war on ISIS and other terrorist groups.

It remains to be seen what follows, especially in the wake of the Paris attacks. Washington rejected earlier Russian peace proposals after agreeing to them in principle.

Will this time be different? US policy remains unchanged - replacing Assad with a convenient stooge Washington controls. Obama didn’t wage war on Syria to quit now. His vow in Turkey at the G-20 to escalate (phony) war on ISIS suggests greater conflict ahead, not resolving things.

Putin and Lavrov know Washington can’t be trusted. They’re committed to wage real war on terrorism - “our common legitimate target…to fight and destroy,” Lavrov stressed.

Washington’s agenda is polar opposite. Expect no change in its imperial war policy, headed for likely escalation post-Paris attacks.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago and can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks World War III".

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at sjlendman.blogspot.com.

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