Kerry says he'd be willing to negotiate with Syrian President Bashar Assad

FILE - In this March 13, 2015 file photo, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry speaks to a meeting of the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. In an interview with CBS News, Kerry said the U.S. is pushing for Syrian President Bashar Assad to seriously discuss a transition strategy to quell the Arab country's four-year civil war. (AP Photo/Brian Snyder, Pool, File) (The Associated Press)

An anti-Syrian government protester holds an Arabic placard that reads: "The freedom Syrian revolution," as he attends a protest to mark the 4th anniversary of the Syrian uprising, at the Martyrs square in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, March 15, 2015. Before the civil war started in March 2011, an estimated 22 million people lived in Syria. More than 3.8 million Syrians have fled their country in the four years since the uprising against President Bashar Assad began. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla) (The Associated Press)

An anti-Syrian government protester waves the revolutionary flag, as he stands on the Lebanese Martyres statue during a protest to mark the 4th anniversary of the Syrian uprising, at the Martyrs square in downtown Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, March 15, 2015. Before the civil war started in March 2011, an estimated 22 million people lived in Syria. More than 3.8 million Syrians have fled their country in the four years since the uprising against President Bashar Assad began. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla) (The Associated Press)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says he would be willing to talk with Syrian President Bashar Assad to stem that nation's violence.

In an interview with CBS News, Kerry says the U.S. is pushing for Assad to seriously discuss a transition strategy to quell the Arab country's four-year civil war.

Kerry says, "We have to negotiate in the end."

While previous efforts saw Assad's government not engage on a concrete plan, Kerry says the U.S. is trying "to get him to come and do that."

He says that may require additional pressure on Assad's Iran-backed government, which is fighting Sunni rebels and Islamic State extremists.