US Secretary of State John Kerry has questioned the legitimacy of Syria's upcoming presidential election saying it is a fraud on democracy.
"Together, we are unified in saying that Assad's staged elections are a farce," Kerry said after the so-called Friends of Syria meeting in London on Thursday.
"They're an insult. They are a fraud on democracy, on the Syrian people and on the world," he added.
The top US diplomat also said Washington and its allies are seeking to support anti-Damascus militants more.
"Our teams are going to come together in very short order now to lay out a specific set of steps that we can and will take together in order to have a greater impact," Kerry said.
"I'm not going to discuss specific weapon systems or otherwise, except to say that every possible avenue that is available is going to be pursued by one country or another," he said.
The Persian Gulf Arab states have pressed Washington to provide more powerful weaponry to the militant groups in Syria, including shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles capable of shooting down warplanes and helicopters.
In a private meeting with Syrian opposition leaders at the State Department last Thursday, Kerry said the US and its allies “wasted a year” in Syria by failing to coordinate efforts to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad.
The so-called Friends of Syria group is made up of Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the UK and the US.
Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. According to some reports, over 150,000 people have been killed and millions displaced due to the violence fueled by Western-backed militants.
