John Kerry

John Kerry has confirmed he spoke to newly appointed Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson this morning and said the US-UK special relationship is "as essential as ever".

The US Secretary of State also stressed US support for a "sensible and measured approach" to Brexit.

Boris Johnson has already made a phonecall to the US in his role as foreign secretary.

Johnson rang Secretary of State John Kerry to tell the US that the country was "at the front of queue" after Brexit.

Johnson has also been pictured addressing 500 staff at the Foreign Office to set out his vision for the future of the department.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has called on the Syrian regime and opposition groups to play a full role in the peace talks in Geneva and demanded that humanitarian aid be allowed into besieged towns to help starving civilians.

In televised statement , Kerry said "there is no military solution to the conflict", adding that a political solution to the Syrian crisis would undercut support for so-called Islamic State militants.

Negotiators from Syria's main opposition group met UN mediator Staffan de Mistura for the first time today, but have warned they may yet walk away from the Geneva talks unless the suffering of civilians in the five-year conflict is eased.

Earlier the peace process ran into trouble after Islamic State bombers killed more than 60 people near the country's holiest Shi'ite shrine.

The head of the Syrian government delegation said the blasts in Damascus, which the Interior Ministry blamed on a car bomb and two suicide bombers, merely confirmed the link between the opposition and terrorism - even though Islamic State has been excluded from the talks.

US Secretary of State John Kerry has spoken in Paris of the fight against IS and how it is a "battle between civilisation itself and barbarism".

Mr Kerry said it is an "assault on our collective sense of reason and purpose and an attack on civility itself."

John Kerry has arrived back in the United States after breaking his leg in a cycling accident.

The US Secretary of State landed at an airport in Boston on Monday evening before heading to Massachusetts General Hospital for further treatment.

Mr Kerry, who is 71, broke his right femur while cycling in south-eastern France on Sunday and spent a night in a Geneva hospital.

He tweeted: "Headed back to Boston. Look fwd to getting leg set & getting back to @StateDept! Meantime, work goes on. Big thanks for well-wishes."

Kerry was due to attend a meeting of international ministers in Paris today to discuss the fight against Islamic State.

Earlier it was confirmed that Kerry would participate by telephone in the summit.

John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, has broken his leg in a cycling accident in France.

Kerry broke his right femur after reportedly hitting a curb while cycling in Scionzer, south-eastern France on Sunday.

The 71-year-old was taken by helicopter from the scene and transferred to a hospital in Geneva, where it was decided he would remain overnight for further observation.

He has cancelled visits to Spain and France, where he was due to attend a conference to discuss the battle against Islamic State.

Kerry was in "great spirits" despite the accident, State Department spokesman John Kirby said, adding that the Secretary of State was expected to make a full recovery.