John Kerry

Netanyahu condemns John Kerry speech

Mr Kerry said the prospect of a peace deal based on a two-state solution was in grave jeopardy.

Israeli settlement building on occupied land was a major problem, he said.

Mr Netanyahu said he was disappointed with the speech, which he said was "unbalanced" and "obsessively focused" on settlements.

Mr Kerry had "paid lip service to the unremitting Palestinian campaign of terrorism" against Israel, he said.

Kerry: 'I lost argument' for force in Syria

This was during a meeting last week with a group of Syrian civilians, according to an audio recording obtained by CNN.

But Kerry also expressed sympathy for the Syrians' demands that the United States intervene more forcefully amid Syrian and Russian airstrikes against civilians, telling the group that he "lost the argument" for using military force against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Syria ceasefire: Kerry blasts Lavrov; UN ready to resume aid convoys; fighting intensifies

"I emphasise this to Russia: The United States continues to believe there is a way forward that, although rocky and difficult and uncertain, can provide the most viable path out of the carnage," Mr Kerry said in an unusually heated showdown at the UN Security Council in New York.

Syria at UN summit as Russian bombing causes tensions

The Kremlin says it is acting on request of the Syrian government of President Bashar Assad. The United States opposes Assad and has questioned Moscow's assertion that it is targeting Islamic terrorists, saying the areas hit close to Homs are strongholds of the moderate opposition to Assad.

World leaders also tried to address the crises in Libya and Yemen with high-level meetings on Friday.

US warns Russia against striking non-IS groups in Syria

Kerry told the United Nations Security Council that the U.S. would not object to Russians hitting Islamic State or al-Qaida targets but airstrikes just to strengthen the hand of Syrian President Bashar Assad would be worrisome.

"It does appear they were in in areas where there probably were not ISIL forces," Carter said of the Russian airstrikes, using an alternative acronym for Islamic State. He would not go into more detail.

Kerry: Russian fighter jets in Syria raise serious questions

U.S. officials say Russia moved a small number of fighter jets to a base in Syria on Friday, hours after U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter talked with Russia Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in the first military contacts between the two countries in some time.

"Clearly, the presence of aircraft with air-to-air combat capacity ... raises serious questions," Kerry said, responding to a question after meeting with British Foreign Minister Philip Hammond.

Kerry: US weighs Russia offer of military talks on Syria

Kerry said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had proposed the consultation in a phone call on Tuesday and that the White House, Pentagon and State Department were considering it.

Kerry suggested that he favored such an idea, noting that the United States wants a clear picture of what Russia's intentions are in Syria following a recent military buildup there.

Pelosi urges US to take in more refugees

Pelosi said a figure of 5,000 more refugees suggested by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry "is far too low." Kerry told members of Congress in a meeting Wednesday that the U.S. will boost its worldwide quota for resettling refugees from 70,000 to 75,000 next year, adding that the number could rise. A fraction of those would be from Syria.

Officials: US to increase number of refugees by 5K next year

Two officials and a congressional aide said that Secretary of State John Kerry told members of Congress in a closed-door meeting on Capitol Hill Wednesday that the United States will boost its worldwide quota for resettling refugees from 70,000 to 75,000 next year, a number that could increase further. A fraction of those would be from Syria.

Kerry said after the meeting that the United States would increase the number of refugees it is willing to take in but did not give a specific number.

Kerry: US committed to accepting more refugees to aid allies

   

After closed-door meetings on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Kerry said President Barack Obama has made it clear that the U.S. wants to take a leadership role on humanitarian issues.

"We are looking hard at the number that we can specifically manage with respect to the crisis in Syria and Europe," he said. "That's being vetted fully right now."