Barack Obama warns Vladimir Putin that he's 'all in' in Syria's civil war

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Putin told Obama Monday at the UN that he doesn't distinguish between ISIS militants and those trying to oust Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad
President dismisses any talk of Russia vs. US conflict now that Russian leader has launched airstrikes in Syria
He hammered Republicans for offering un-nuanced 'mumbo-jumbo' foreign policy prescriptions
Russian airstrikes began this week; US-Russia military leaders spoke Thursday to coordinate battle plans
See our full coverage of US president Barack Obama

By J. Taylor Rushing, U.s. Political Reporter, For Dailymail.com and David Martosko, Us Political Editor For Dailymail.com

Published: 17:13 EST, 2 October 2015 | Updated: 08:59 EST, 3 October 2015

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President Barack Obama said at a Friday afternoon press conference that Russian president Vladimir Putin doesn't distinguish between moderate rebels in Syria and the ISIS terror forces that have finally compelled Russia to enter the bloody civil war.

Obama characterized Putin's stance as communicated to him at a private meeting on Monday at the United Nations in New York that 'they're all terrorists,' and there is no difference between the two groups.

The assertion could be a crippling or at least a complicating factor in the U.S.'s attempts to battle the extremist terror group while also supporting moderate Sunni forces who are trying to oust President Bashar al-Assad in Syria.

President Obama on Friday at the White House, where he said Russian President Vladimir Putin told him earlier this week in New York that he does not distinguish between ISIS forces and those seeking to oust Bashar al-Assad in Syria

Putin, shown here on Friday in Paris for peace talks on resolving the tension in Ukraine, has stymied efforts by the US and its allies to remove Assad from power in Syria

But, Obama also sent a stern warning to Putin on Friday that now that he has brought Russia into the Syrian conflict, he bears a responsibility for its peaceful conclusion.

Obama was speaking at the White House at the end of a tense week in which Russia entered the Syrian conflict by launching its first airstrikes in the war-torn country.

But predominantly, he, was quizzed by reporters about his private meeting with Putin in New York.

'He doesn't distinguish between ISIS and a moderate Sunni opposition that wants to see Assad go,' Obama said.

'From their perspective they're all terrorists... We're very clear in sticking to our belief and our policy that the problem here is Assad and the brutalities he's inflicted on the Syrian people and that it has to stop.'

'We're not going to cooperate with a Russian campaign to simply try to destroy anybody who is disgusted and fed up with Mr. Assad's behavior.'

Presidential politics was never far from Obama's discussion with reporters on Friday, one of whom asked the president about Republican candidates who have been liberally espousing potential solutions to the Syrian situation.

Even Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton this week endorsed the idea of imposing a no-fly zone in Syria, to protect refugees and anti-Assad forces.

'People are offering up half-baked ideas as though they are solutions,' Obama responded about the GOP presidential candidates.

'What I'd like to see people ask is, specifically, precisely, what is it that you would do? And how would you fund it? Typically what you get is a bunch of mumbo-jumbo.'

Clashes sprung up again on Thursday in the Syrian town of Douma between forces loyal to Assad and Islamic militants

Assad, shown ere meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif in Damascus in August, has stayed in power by stitching together support from Russia as well as Iran

Asked specifically whether Clinton's proposal amounted to 'half-baked' 'mumbo jumbo,' Obama defended his former secretary of state.

'Hillary Clinton is not half-baked in terms of her approach to these problems,' he said.

'But I also think there's a difference between running for president and being president, and the decisions I'm making and the discussions I'm having with the joint chiefs become much more specific and require a different kind of judgment.

'If and when she's president, she'll make those judgments. She's been there enough that she knows these are tough calls.'

Obama has long accused Putin of secretly helping al-Assad stay in power in Syria, a charge he repeated on Friday.

But he had been hoping to enlist the Russian's cooperation in battling ISIS in Syria as well as persuading him that al-Assad has to go.

His description on Friday's of Putin's position makes that much more difficult if the Russian leader makes no distinction between the two conflicts.

'The reason Assad is still in power is because Russia and Iran have supported him,' Obama said.

'I was very clear (with Putin) that the only way to solve the problem in Syria is (Assad's removal). You cannot rehabilitate him, in the eyes of Syrians.'

Asked if he would be willing to work with Putin if the Russian leader was willing to broker a governmental transition in Syria, Obama said he told Putin that a military solution alone is doomed to failure.

'It's just going to get them stuck in a quagmire, and it won't work,' Obama said he told Putin.

'And they will be there for awhile if they don't take a different course. I also said to him that it is true that the United States and Russia and the entire world have a common interest in destroying ISIS.'

Obama also rejected any assertion that Syria would become a 'proxy war' between the U.S. and Russia, even though his administration believes that this week's airstrikes by Russia appear to have been aimed at forces that were battling Assad - not ISIS.

Secretary of State John Kerry said late Thursday on 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' that U.S. and Russian military leaders huddled earlier in the day via conference call to coordinate flight plans so neither country harms the others' war planes.

Obama said it is incorrect to characterize the Russian airstrikes in Syria as a long-awaited entry by the country into the war against ISIS.

Rather, Obama repeated his assertion that Putin wants to help Assad, with whom Russia has a lucrative business relationship.

'Mr. Putin had to go into Syria not out of strength but our of weakness, because his client, Mr. Assad, was crumbling and it was insufficient to keep sending them arms and money, and he has to put in his own planes and his own pilots,' Obama said.

'Iran and Assad make up Mr. Putin's coalition at the moment. The rest of the world makes up ours. And so I don't think people are fooled by the current strategy.

Asked by one reporter if Putin has strengthened his position in Russia, Obama bristled somewhat and repeated that sanctions against Ukraine remain in place because of Putin's aggression in that country.

'Russia is not strong as a result of what they've been doing. They get attention,' Obama said.

'Mr. Putin's actions have been successful only insofar as they've boosted his poll ratings inside of Russia.'