The scene is set for a Clinton-Lavrov meeting that could still ring the death knell for the Assad regime. Months of futile diplomatic tussling, UN deadlock, and angry finger-pointing over Syria have now boiled down to this: a dramatic, last-ditch effort this weekend to cut a deal between the US and Russia that eases President Bashar al-Assad from office and replaces him with an inclusive, transitional government that can halt the current downwards spiral towards all-out civil war. Barack Obama's administration first floated the idea of ditching Assad while simultaneously guaranteeing Russia's interests in Syria more than a month ago. Despite Moscow's rebuffs, the White House has kept at it. Obama spent two hours discussing Syria with a deeply sceptical Vladimir Putin, Russia's president, at this month's G20 summit in Mexico. US officials did not pretend Putin was won over. But they did claim headway in identifying areas where US and Russian interests coincide, principally preventing a chaotic implosion and a regional war. "We agreed that we need to see a cessation of violence, that a political process has to be created to prevent civil war," Obama said. "We have found many common points on this issue," said Putin.Source: The Coming Crisis
