“It will not work to keep him in power”, Obama said.
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“(L)evel-headed politicians are…realizing the need to concentrate on…stopping ISIS’ attempts to spread (its diabolical) influence globally”, said Lavrov. “That said, you know, they were attempting to strike ISIL targets”, which would be a net plus, he said, using the USA government’s acronym for the Islamic State.
Ints Kalnins / ReutersThe USA president’s comments came on the heels of Russian President Vladimir Putin announcing that Russia is ready to support the opposition military squads fighting with terrorist groups in Syria.
In at least 50 bombing raids, towns across Deir al-Zor province, including near the Iraqi border, were hit and dozens of vehicles and fuel oil tankers were destroyed, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
France dismissed Russian suggestions on Friday its air strikes against oil installations in Syria were illegal, saying they were “an appropriate and necessary riposte” to attacks by Islamic State.
These are a few in a string of videos released by the Russian Foreign Ministry in recent days showing Moscow’s continued military action in Syria.
On Friday, Turkey summoned Russia’s ambassador in protest over the “intensive” bombing of Turkmen villages in northern Syria by Russian warplanes.
The Russians and the French are now coordinating attacks on ISIS stronghold.
Indeed, when Russian forces in Syria bombed the de facto Islamic State capital of Raqqa last week, “Russians contacted us and told us what they were going to do, and we acknowledged it, and everybody continued on with their missions”, he said.
French President Francois Hollandewill visit Washington on Tuesday for talks with Mr Obama before meeting Mr Putin two days later in Moscow.
Islamic State could be earning $500 million a year from its oil trade, according to officials at the U.S. Department of the Treasury-five times as much as USA intelligence officials estimated last year.
The USA and its allies continue to face a hard balancing act, attempting to pinpoint airstrikes that will cripple refineries and other facilities for a year or more but not wipe them out because that would remove a critical resource for Syria’s postwar future.
“The faster Russian Federation and Iran give life to this process, the faster the violence can taper down and we can isolate Daesh (IS) and al Nusra (terrorist organization) and begin to do what our strategy has always set out to do”, Kerry had said.
They have destroyed 26 command centres, 35 depots, 28 fortified sites, three training camps, eight explosive factories and 86 heavy weapon factories.
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Obama also expressed hope that Russian Federation may shift the military focus from defending Assad to attacking the Islamic State group.
