Showdown Tonight: Clinton and Lavrov go Head-to-Head on Syria

The US secretary of state and her Russian counterpart will push to find common ground on the Syrian conflict at a summit in St Petersburg. The meeting comes as bomb blasts struck Damascus and Syrian President Assad pledged to “annihilate terrorists.”

The two powers are expected to discuss Kofi Annan’s unity government plan ahead of a crucial meeting on Syria in Geneva on Saturday, which will bring together UN Security Council members, European and some Middle East countries.

Annan’s plan does not call for Assad’s ouster, but pushes for the creation of a transitional government that would exclude figures that jeopardize stability.

[link to www.rt.com]

Lavrov acknowledged that a transition period is necessary to end the violence in Syria, but said Russia had not agreed to all elements of Annan's plan, in particular any suggestion that Assad would be required to leave.

[link to www.ynetnews.com]