Moscow, Washington committed to fighting against terrorism, says Russian FM

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The vote came after US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow to discuss the escalating tensions in Syria.

The call follows a letter last week from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi that called for Congress to return from recess to debate Trump's military action in Syria, after Trump authorized a strike of 60 Tomahawk missiles against a Syrian government facility in response to a chemical weapons attack that the United States has pinned on Assad.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (L) and US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson arrive to attend a press conferece after their talks in Moscow on April 12, 2017.

In a sign the Kremlin is not ready to drop Assad, Syria's foreign minister will fly to Moscow to meet Lavrov on Thursday before a three-way meeting with Iran on Friday. The agreement was suspended after the United States launched its first attack on Syria during the country's six-year conflict last week.

In the latest veto, Russian Federation blocked a draft resolution backed by the United States, France and Britain to denounce the attack in the town of Khan Sheikhoun and tell Assad's government to provide access for investigators and information such as flight plans.

Describing the Syrian leader as a "butcher" he said he had "absolutely no doubt" the U.S. had done the "right thing". It has conducted an air campaign in Syria since September 2015, saving Assad's government from imminent collapse and helping to reverse the Syrian military's fortunes. So we have to find ways to manage our relationship with Russian Federation, he said. "And we agree we want to deny a safe haven for terrorists who want to attack both of our countries".

The US responded to the incident days later by launching 59 Tomahawk missiles at the airbase from which the Syrian government allegedly launched the attack.

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Monday's event came amid questions over whether or not the White House would be able to adequately organize the event in time. In her brief remarks to revelers, Mrs Trump thanked military service members "who are keeping us safe" around the globe.

And as the men entered a day of tense talks, Putin admitted that relations between Washington and Moscow have worsened in the three months that Trump has been in office. Lavrov said the deal would apply only if the U.S. and its allies targeted terrorists, not Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces.

"Russia's veto exposes the hollowness of Putin's call yesterday for United Nations investigations", he said in a statement.

The White House wants to see Russian Federation drop its support for Assad, whom Trump labelled a "butcher". I don't know whether they will be able to work it out, but the attempt is made, and this is an important step.

"Damascus believes that the role of the Geneva process in the Syrian settlement has been reduced to minimum after US President Donald Trump came to power, Muallem added".

"Unfortunately, we've got some differences with regard to a majority of those issues", Lavrov lamented.

"That could happen, and it may not happen", he said. Instead, Moscow maintains the Syrian army hit a rebel depot containing chemical weapons.

The polarised positions were evident at the UN Security Council on Wednesday when Russian Federation vetoed a Western-drafted resolution that would have required Syrian cooperation in an investigation into the suspected chemical attack.

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