U.S. plays down absence from Moscow talks on Syria, says not 'sidelined'

Foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov (front) of Russia, Mevlut Cavusoglu (2nd R) of Turkey, Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) of Iran, and members of the delegations attend a meeting in Moscow, Russia, December 20, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday sought to downplay its absence from talks on the Syrian conflict among Russia, Iran and Turkey in Moscow, saying it was not a "snub" and did not reflect a decline of U.S. influence in the Middle East.

However, President Barack Obama's decision to offer only limited support to moderate rebels has left Washington with little leverage to influence the situation in Syria, especially after Moscow began launching air strikes against rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad.