WASHINGTON, May 3 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of "repercussions" if his government does not adhere to the ceasefire agreement.
"Unequivocally, if Assad does not adhere to this, there will clearly be repercussions," Kerry told reporters at the State Department. "And one of them may be the total destruction of the ceasefire and they go back to war."
Kerry's warning came amid renewed violence in Aleppo, Syria's largest city, where the al-Nusra Front and other groups have engaged in bitter fighting with Syrian military over the past ten days.
"There may be even other repercussions that are being discussed, but that is for the future to determine," Kerry said.
The Syrian government has accused the rebels in Aleppo of violating the U.S.-Russia-backed truce, which went into effect in late February.
On Monday, Kerry met with United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura in Geneva in an effort to restore the fragile truce and seek more support for a political transition.
De Mistura expressed deep concern over deteriorating situation and continued violence in Syria, particularly in Aleppo, warning that "it is putting the cessation of hostilities at a high risk."
On Tuesday, Kerry also urged Assad to start a political transition by Aug. 1.
"So we're now coming up to May. So either something happens in these next few months, or they are asking for a very different track," Kerry said, without specifying what actions the United States will take.
HANOI, June 23 (Xinhua) -- The Mekong Delta Forum 2016 discussing solutions for the critical challenges posed by climate change in the region will be held on June 27-28 in Vietnam's southern Ho Chi Minh City.
The forum, themed "Committed to a Prosperous and Climate Resilient Mekong Delta" will be jointly organized by the World Bank (WB), Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Ministry of Planning and Investment, as well as other foreign organizations, the WB Vietnam said in a press release on Thursday.
The forum aims to deepen the dialogue of climate change risks and adaptive strategies, discuss sustainable and climate resilient livelihoods, highlight the role of other stakeholders such as private sector, research institutions in enhancing and scaling up successful models.
Direction and content of current and proposed projects to be financed in the Mekong Delta will also be discussed during the forum, which will see the attendance of Vietnamese Prime Minister, said WB.
Since late 2015, countries along Mekong River have been suffering droughts of varying degrees due to the impact of the El Nino phenomenon which threatens people's livelihood.
In Vietnam's southern Mekong Delta, the drought and decrease in groundwater levels have resulted in the most extensive saltwater intrusion in 90 years, the worst since records began.
Mekong River originates in China and runs through Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. It is known as Lancang in the Chinese stretch.
WASHINGTON - FBI Director James Comey on Monday confirmed for the first time that the bureau is investigating possible ties between Republican Donald Trump's presidential campaign and Russia as Moscow sought to influence the 2016 U.S. election.
Comey and Admiral Mike Rogers, the director of the National Security Agency, made clear that their investigation of Moscow and November's U.S. elections could last for months.
Appearing before a congressional panel, Comey also publicly challenged Trump's claim that former President Barack Obama wiretapped his 2016 campaign headquarters in Manhattan's Trump Tower.
The two officials spent 5-12 hours before the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee in testimony marked by starkly partisan divides between the panel's majority Republicans and Democrats.
Comey refused to back away from his claim that Russian President Vladimir Putin did not simply want Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton to lose the election; he wanted Donald Trump to win.
Trump created a controversy in early March when he tweeted without giving evidence that Obama had wiretapped his campaign while the businessman competed against Clinton.