The presidents of France and Russia on Thursday agreed to tighten cooperation in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) group.
The group has claimed responsibility for deadly attacks against citizens of both France and Russia in recent weeks: the Nov. 13 shootings and suicide bombings in Paris that killed 130 people, and the Oct. 31 bombing of a Russian passenger jet over Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula that claimed 224 lives.
French President Francois Hollande has been on a diplomatic drive since the Paris attacks to increase cooperation in tackling the group, which holds territory in Syria and Iraq. He met this week with US President Barak Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi before flying to Moscow on Thursday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Photo: AP
Hollande and Putin agreed to increase intelligence sharing, intensifying their airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria and cooperating on selecting targets.
“We agreed on a very important issue: To strike the terrorists only, DAESH and the jihadi groups only, and not to strike the forces and the groups that are fighting against the terrorists,” Hollande said after the meeting, referring to the Islamic State by its Arabic-language acronym. “And we are going to exchange some information about that: what can be struck, and what must not be struck.”
The two countries remain at odds in their approach toward Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, with Hollande saying he “does not have his place in Syria’s future,” while Putin said that “the Syrian president’s fate should be entirely in the hands of the Syrian people.”
Putin described al-Assad’s army as a “natural ally” in the fight against the Islamic State.
Putin harshly criticized Washington for failing to prevent the downing of a Russian warplane engaged in airstrikes in Syria by NATO member Turkey on Tuesday.
Turkey said it shot down the Russian Su-24 bomber after it flew into its airspace for 17 seconds despite repeated warnings.
Putin dismissed the Turkish claim of intrusion and held the US responsible for failing to rein in its ally, saying that Russia had informed the US about its military flights in the area in advance.
Putin denounced the Turkish action, saying it “thoughtlessly and rudely” destroyed friendly ties between Moscow and Ankara.
Ankara has “temporarily” suspended airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria, local media reported yesterday.
Hollande on Thursday flew back to France for a ceremony to honor those killed in the Paris attacks.
The president arrived at the historic Invalides buildings in the center of the capital to the sound of the French national anthem La Marseillaise being played by the Republican Guard.
“We will not give in either to fear or to hate,” Hollande said in the courtyard of the Invalides buildings, speaking to 2,000 dignitaries and some of those injured in the violence.
“To all of you, I solemnly promise that France will do everything to destroy the army of fanatics that committed these crimes,” he said.
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