Outgoing French foreign minister lashes out over Syria

PARIS

France’s departing Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius has accused Russia and Iran of “complicity” with a “brutal” Syrian regime and questioned the commitment of the U.S. in resolving the crisis.

Fabius announced earlier that he is leaving the government. He will chair France’s constitutional court, President Francois Hollande said in a statement.

A recent offensive backed by Russian air power has seen President Bashar al-Assad’s forces score a series of victories against rebel groups while forcing hundreds of thousands of civilians from Aleppo -- Syria’s largest city -- towards the Turkish border.

"There are more of these brutalities, it must be said. I call those responsible by their names; complicity on the part of Russia and Iran," Fabius said in a speech at the National Assembly on Wednesday.

Fabius added the U.S’ "ambiguous" policy regarding the crisis in Syria was contributing to the problem.

“When you add [Assad’s] brutality, Russia and Iran’s complicity and the ambiguity, you get the drama taking place in Aleppo,” he said.

France is part of the U.S.-led anti-Daesh coalition.

"There are the ambiguities including among the actors of the coalition ... I'm not going to repeat what I've said before about the main pilot of the coalition.

"But we don't have the feeling that there is a very strong commitment that is there."

Fabius said he did not expect U.S. president, Barack Obama, to change his stance in the coming months.

“I don’t think that the end of Mr. Obama’s mandate will push him to act as much as his minister declares [publicly],” he added, referring to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

“There are words but actions are different and obviously the Iranians and Russians feel that,” Fabius said.

Asked about his country’s policy regarding Syria, Fabius said "the position of France is to request and require a cessation of bombing… demanding a cease-fire".

France wants a political transition in Syria while ensuring the continuation of the fight against Daesh’s terrorism, Fabius added.