President Barack Obama is offering a harsh assessment of Russia’s role as he addresses the global effort to fight the Islamic State.
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Someone has suggested that the president “intentionally” said “Daesh AND ISIL”.
But US president Barack Obama, along with French counterpart Francios Hollande, pressed Russian Federation to focus its attacks on the savage terror group rather than seek revenge on Turkey. “But everyone should respect the right of Turkey to defend its borders”, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara.
“If Russian Federation is directing its energies towards Daash and ISIL, some of those conflicts or potentials for mistakes or escalation are less likely to occur”, Obama said, using alternate names for the Islamic State.
On Tuesday, Obama said “Russia’s the outlier” in the fight against Islamic State.
Beyond their discussions on military co-operation, Obama and Hollande are expected to discuss diplomatic efforts to achieve a political transition in Syria.
He said Tuesday greater cooperation between the United States and Russian Federation is required in battling ISIS, though persistent USA skepticism about Putin’s intentions in Syria have until now prevented any significant military coordination between the two countries.
“We hope that they refocus their attention on what is the most substantial threat, and that they serve as a constructive partner”, Obama said of Russian Federation.
Hollande said he would bring that message to Moscow, adding “We do not want to exclude anyone”.
Hollande said France came under attack for what it represents, for what it stands for, for its culture, it?s way of living, as well as its values and principles. And he called on Europe to do more to stop the flow of foreign fighters, share passenger lists and exchange information across borders.
“It can not be tolerated, it must be destroyed, and we must do it together”, said the president, who was referring to the Islamic State Group.
Hollande says the two countries will strengthen their intelligence-sharing regarding targets. “The United States is certainly pulling more than our own weight”, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Monday. But the USA contends Moscow is going after rebels fighting Assad, a Kremlin ally whom the US wants pushed out. “We need an anti-Assad and anti-ISIS strategy and to put forth resources to remove both of those threats from Syria”.
“We can not, and we will not succumb to fear”. Efforts to train and equip moderate rebel groups in Syria have struggled, and Obama has authorized the deployment of 50 special operations forces to jumpstart the program.
“Viva la France”, Obama added. Obama says the US and France together will “defend out nations”. This was their first meeting after the November 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 people.
Obama spoke from the White House on Wednesday shortly after meeting with his national security team. “And they can and should take a lot of solace in knowing the most powerful country in the world has their back and is standing with them in this hard time”.
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