Then, he continued, we must build a coalition inside of Iraq. The two leaders, however, hinted that Russian President Vladimir Putin should be blamed as to why the Russian jet was downed.
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Hollande reiterated that Assad, a key Moscow ally, “has no place in the future of Syria”.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, officials said that the United States, by working with Moscow militarily in Syria, could be seen as complicit in the killing and wounding of civilians. Russian Federation is conducting separate airstrikes against ISIS and other groups in coordination with the forces of Assad, the Syrian president.
Cameron said he would not call a parliamentary vote on the strikes unless he was sure of a clear majority in favor.
“Syria has broken down”, he said.
Following his meeting with the French president, Obama said Russian cooperation in the fight against IS would be “enormously helpful”.
They had no immediate word on casualties.
Hollande said the downing of the Russian jet highlighted the need for countries to coordinate their military activities more closely to avoid a possible repetition of what he called a “regrettable incident”. But both men were killed during a raid in Saint-Denis on November 18, that caused the collapse of an entire floor of an apartment building.
But he insisted a partnership is impossible as long as Russian Federation stands by Syrian President Bashar Assad, who is blamed by the USA for plunging his country into chaos and creating the vacuum that allowed the Islamic State group to strengthen. “I had a conversation with President Putin in Turkey, and I indicated to him at the time that to the extent that they make that strategic shift – to try to bring all the parties together; try to execute a political transition that all parties would agree to; and refocus attention on going after [ISIS].”, the president further said.
He denounced the Turkish action, saying it “thoughtlessly and rudely” destroyed friendly ties between the two countries.
Putin also expressed his disappointment as Turkey only made “vague explanations”, without offering full apologies nor collaboration with Russian Federation to prevent similar tragedies from repeating.
President Obama pledged yesterday that the United States and its allies will “win” the battle against the Islamic State as he faces mounting pressure to escalate the fight against terrorist extremists in the wake of a series of bloody tragedies.
Cameron on Thursday is trying to persuade British lawmakers to back expanding Royal Air Force strikes against IS from Iraq into Syria. Paris and Washington are both expected to press Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan to step up their participation in the campaign against ISIS in Syria.
Obama and Hollande tried to focus instead on their joint efforts against the Islamic State, lauding more than 8,000 air strikes that they said have helped to reclaim some territory.
AL-Manar TV says Abdul-Salam Hendawi, also known as Abu Abdo, died in an ambush in an IS-held area in Syria’s central province of Homs.
Republican opposition to accepting more refugees from Syria has become more strident since it emerged that a Syrian passport, bearing the name Ahmed Almuhamed, was found near the remains of a suicide bomber at Paris’ Stade de France on Friday night.
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More than 200,000 people are estimated to have been killed in the country’s civil war and there is evidence the Assad regime has used chemical weapons. “This president hasn’t led”, McCain said.
