Kerry postpones Mideast visit amid Syria talks

US Secretary of State John Kerry has postponed a trip to Israel and Palestinian territories this week to attend White House talks on Syria amid growing calls for America to arm the opposition. The news came as Kerry's efforts to rekindle the Middle East peace talks appear to have bogged down, and as a flow of Hezbollah fighters into Syria is helping the regime win a string of victories against the rebels. "The secretary will be in Washington this week. He had planned a trip that was widely reported across the region," State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters on Monday. She confirmed Kerry would be taking part in White House meetings on Syria, describing them as "routine" talks in which President Barack Obama's national security team explores "all possible options that would accomplish our objective of helping the Syrian opposition." But Psaki refuted the notion that Washington was getting close to bending to pressure and dropping its refusal to arm the Syrian opposition. "There's been a long conversation about how to continue to aid the opposition and what we can do to strengthen their position on the ground while also planning a political transition. Many of these options have been discussed and they will continue to be," she stressed. Kerry is also trying with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to organise a peace conference bringing together the regime of President Bashar al-Assad and the rebels in a bid to end the fighting. Source: AFP