Geneva 2 peace talks begin

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says there's no room for Bashar al-Assad in Syria's transition government.

Kerry is among diplomats gathered in Switzerland to begin the first round of talks at the Geneva 2 convention for peace in Syria.

(SOUNDBITE) (English) UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE, JOHN KERRY, SAYING:

"Mutual consent, which is what has brought us here, for a transition government means that the government cannot be formed with someone that is objected to by one side or the other. That means that Bashar Assad will not be part of that transition government. There is no way, no way possible in the imagination, that the man who has led the brutal response to his own people could regain the legitimacy to govern.

There was immediate evidence of sharp differences, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov cautioned against outsiders meddling in Syria's affairs.

(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SERGEI LAVROV, SAYING:

"We count on a