Russia Says the US Should Put More Pressure on Rebels in Syria To Participate in Peace Talks

Rebels currently demanding Assad step down

(Reuters)—The United States is not putting enough pressure on the Syrian opposition to participate in an international peace conference and drop its demand for President Bashar al-Assad's exit, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday.

Russia and the United States announced on May 7 that they would try to bring Assad's government and its opponents together as soon as possible at an international conference to seek an end to the civil war, but no date has been set.