On October 3, 2016, the US State Department announced the suspension of bilateral talks with Moscow seeking a ceasefire in Syria, and cancellation of a Joint Implementation Center for action against the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. State Department spokesman John Kirby said, “The United States spared no effort in negotiating and attempting to implement an arrangement with Russia aimed at reducing violence…Unfortunately…Russia and the Syrian regime have chosen to pursue a military course.” In Moscow, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson placed the responsibility on the United States, and President Putin announced the suspension of the agreement signed in 2000 to destroy plutonium. The United States expressed “disappointment” with this decision.
The background to these developments was the final collapse of the ceasefire in Syria that began on September 12 under an American-Russian agreement, followed by extremely heavy bombing of Aleppo by the Syrian and Russian air forces, in which hundreds of civilians in the city were killed. The international community’s response was confined to mere – though at times severe – protests.
