Next week, he will make his case in Washington to President Obama and then travel to Moscow with the same message for President Vladimir Putin.
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President Barack Obama said Wednesday the U.S. would welcome Russian Federation shifting more of its efforts in Syria to confronting the Islamic State group instead of “propping up” Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
With this in mind, French President Francois Hollande will meet President Putin and US President Obama next week.
But Obama insisted Syrians would not accept Assad staying in power, after a brutal civil war that has seen his regime carry out indiscriminate attacks on civilians.
Assad spoke at length about the presence of Islamic State terrorists in his country, blaming their existence on the West. He said the militant group grew and flourished in Iraq after the 2003 USA invasion. They can be strong as long as they have strong support from different states, whether Middle Eastern states or Western states. The missiles easily could have been meant for U.S.-supported militias on the ground, since Putin’s hit them as well. There is no solution except to come to an agreement with the United States; and there is no way to do that unless Assad is eased out. Russian Federation and Iran say the decision must be left to Syrians – a position Western officials say would mean Assad stays. The US, Russian Federation and France have taken different tacks on addressing the rise of Islamic State in Syria and how to restore peace in the war-torn country. Russian Federation signed on to a diplomatic statement in Vienna on Saturday calling for a “Syrian-led and Syrian-owned political transition”.
He said: ‘The worse part is knowing that once you’re there you belong to no one.
However, they remained at loggerheads over the role that Assad would play in Syria’s political process. Asked how much territory the government still controls, Assad replied, “geographically speaking, the situation changes day by day”.
The Islamic State group said it had bombed the Russian jet in Egypt in retaliation for the bombing raids.
But it was only with Russia’s intervention in Ukraine and its annexation of Crimea in March 2014 that Putin became openly confrontational, portraying his country as the victim of aggression.
“We must be implacable against all forms of violence”.
Moscow announced last night that its warplanes are hunting ISIS oil tanker trucks in Syria.
Hollande stressed that “life must resume in full” and promised extra security to ensure that museums and popular tourist sites can reopen. “We’ll get them no matter where they hide around the globe”. There were also reports that a Russian artillery unit might be supporting Assad’s forces in central Homs province.
“Irrespective of disagreements of policy over Syria, I am determined to work with other country services the best I can in order to prevent successful terrorist attacks”, he said.
Russia’s General Staff unveiled the names of a few ISIL leaders eliminated in Russia’s strikes in Syria.
Mr Obama also stated that Islamic State militants could not be eliminated until there was a political settlement in Syria.
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-Bloomberg’s Henry Meyer, Ilya Arkhipov and Josh Wingrove contributed.
