(MENAFN- The Journal Of Turkish Weekly) German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier has stressed the need for a "way to end conflict in Syria in the short run and a political solution in the longer term".
Steinmeier met with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir on Monday. The two top diplomats handled the civil war in Syria that has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians.
Speaking in a joint press conference with his Saudi counterpart, Steinmeier said it was quite difficult to find a solution to the ongoing conflict in Syria and that the country faced complete destruction if an immediate end to the crisis was found.
The civil war in the country entered its fifth year in March 2015.
Adel al-Jubeir said Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad had done nothing for a political solution to the crisis.
Stating that the protection of state institutions in Syria is vital to stop the country from drifting into a complete chaos, he said: "The quicker Assad leaves, the better we can protect the state institutions."
The U.S. insists on a solution without Assad, saying he has no place in Syria's future, which is also the policy pursued by Turkey.
Russia, on the other hand, would like to re-establish Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad as a legitimate contact.
The U.S. also maintains its goal of pursuing the train-and-equip program - a program which is also supported by Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Russia opposes the deployment of U.S.-trained forces in Syria, but calls for the use of Syrian ground forces against Daesh, as airstrikes are not enough to defeat the militant group.
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