Putin calls Kerry liar on Syrian rebels before G-20 - New York Daily News

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[h=4]RIA NOVOSTI/REUTERS[/h]Russia’s Vladimir Putin said Secretary of State John Kerry 'openly lies' about leaders of Syria opposition, which Putin believes is led by Al Qaeda.

On the eve of President Obama’s arrival in Russia for the G-20 summit, Vladimir Putin sparked a war of words by calling Secretary of State John Kerry a liar for portraying the Syrian opposition as moderates.
“He lies openly, and he knows that he lies,” the Russian president charged, with impeccable timing — he is set to host Obama and other world leaders in St. Petersburg on Thursday.

[h=4]JASON REED/Reuters[/h][h=4]Secretary of State John Kerry arrives at a closed Senate hearing on Syria on Wednesday at the Capitol. Kerry has said it's not the administration's intention to draw the country into another disastrous war.[/h]
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During a meeting with his council on human rights Wednesday, the Kremlin boss claimed the main combat unit attempting to topple Syrian dictator Bashar Assad is essentially an Al Qaeda command.

[h=4]SANA/REUTERS[/h][h=4]The Obama administration says its intelligence shows Syria’s President Bashar Assad, center, killed 1,429 people, including more than 400 children, with an Aug. 21 chemical attack.[/h]
During his testimony Tuesday at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Kerry was asked by Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson if the Syrian rebels were being infiltrated by Al Qaeda.
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[h=4]SANA HANDOUT/EPA[/h][h=4]The Obama administration says it wants to 'degrade and deter’ the ability of Assad to use chemical weapons.[/h]
Kerry insisted that was “basically not true.”
“The opposition has increasingly become more defined by its moderation, more defined by the breadth of its membership, and more defined by its adherence to some, you know, democratic process and to an all-inclusive, minority-protecting constitution, which will be broad-based and secular with respect to the future of Syria,” Kerry said. “And that’s very critical.”

[h=4]EPA/ERIK MARTENSSON SWEDEN OUT[/h][h=4]Obama was handed a political victory Wednesday, albeit short-lived as rally for congressional support continues.[/h]
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But Putin said Kerry is well aware that the Al Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra front is fighting on the side of the Syrian rebels. “This was very unpleasant and surprising for me,” Putin said of Kerry’s statements Tuesday. “We talk to them (the Americans) and we assume they are decent people, but he is lying and he knows that he is lying. This is sad.”

[h=4]J. Scott Applewhite/AP[/h][h=4]Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, left, and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey, right, arrive for a closed-door intelligence briefing for the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday on Capitol Hill.[/h]
A State department official quickly fired back. “This is certainly not the first time we’ve seen a visceral response from President Putin,” the official told Fox News. “Needless to say, the secretary of state testified truthfully and accurately to the Congress.”
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[h=4]Carolyn Kaster/AP[/h][h=4]Director of National Intelligence James Clapper Jr. heads to a closed-door Senate Foreign Relation Committee meeting on the authorization of the use of force in Syria.[/h]
Russia is the chief backer of the Assad regime, and has said any military action against Syria that does not have UN Security Council approval would be an act of aggression.
The U.S. Wednesday moved a step closer to attacking Syria as punishment for an alleged gas attack on civilians when the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 10-to-7 to approve a resolution allowing the use of force in a “limited and specified manner against legitimate military targets” during a 60-day period, with a possible 30-day extension. The panel said no to putting troops on the ground.

[h=4]J. Scott Applewhite/AP[/h][h=4]Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., arrives for a closed-door briefing for senators with Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington.[/h]
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The full Senate is expected to vote on the resolution Monday, when Congress officially reconvenes.

[h=4]J. Scott Applewhite/AP[/h][h=4]Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., steps into an elevator on Capitol Hill.[/h]
With News Wire Services
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[h=4]Carolyn Kaster/AP[/h][h=4]Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., surprised his colleagues by announcing he would oppose military action in Syria.[/h]

[h=4]MUZAFFAR SALMAN/REUTERS[/h][h=4]Free Syrian Army fighters rest inside a room in the old city of Aleppo.[/h]

[h=4]MUZAFFAR SALMAN/REUTERS[/h][h=4]A Free Syrian Army fighter points his weapon Wednesday through a hole from inside a house in the old city of Aleppo.[/h]

[h=4]CHRISTOPHE KARABA/EPA[/h][h=4]French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault warned parliament that Assad would launch more chemical attacks if he is not deterred.[/h]

[h=4]HOEP/AP[/h][h=4]A Syrian military tank caught on fire Wednesday during clashes with Free Syrian Army fighters in Joubar a suburb of Damascus.[/h]

[h=4]AFP PHOTO/ KENZO TRIBOUILLARDKENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP/Getty Images[/h][h=4]French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault urges support for military action on Syria.[/h]

[h=4]RAUL MORENO/AFP/Getty Images[/h][h=4]The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier was sent toward the Red Sea in mid-August and is awaiting orders to attack.[/h]
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