Putin pledges cooperation
Russia yesterday vowed to cooperate in the fight against terrorism as French President Francois Hollande began the last leg of a diplomatic bid to step up efforts to crush the Islamic State group.
Sitting down to talks with Hollande at the Kremlin, Russian President Vladimir Putin pointed to the November 13 assaults in Paris which 130 people were killed, and the IS-claimed bombing of a Russian jetliner over Egypt on October 31, with the loss of all 224 people onboard.
These "make us unite our efforts against the common evil," Putin said. "We are ready for this cooperation."
Hollande, pitching a message he had taken to other major capitals with varying degrees of success, said, "We have to form this large coalition together to strike against terrorism."
Moscow was the last stage of a whirlwind campaign by Hollande to intensify efforts to crush IS in Iraq and Syria.
He notably gained the support of Britain, whose prime minister, David Cameron, set out his case on yesterday for air strikes against IS in Syria, telling lawmakers that his country could not "sub-contract" its security to allies. Cameron has also offered France the use of a British air base in Cyprus for flying missions against the jihadists.
In Berlin, Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen yesterday said Germany could offer France Tornado reconnaissance jets, a naval frigate, satellite images and aerial refuelling to back the fight against IS.
In contrast, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, in talks with Hollande in Paris, offered only vague support for "a coalition of greater and greater strength" able to destroy IS.
France last week invoked a clause requiring EU member states to provide military assistance after the Paris attacks.
Hollande also received what is perceived to be a cool response from President Barack Obama when he flew to Washington on Tuesday, with the US reluctant to intensify military action in Syria without a clear strategy or political track in place.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov welcomed a proposal by Hollande to close off the Syria-Turkey border, considered the main crossing point for foreign fighters seeking to join IS.
"I think this is a good proposal and... President Hollande will talk to us in greater detail about it. We would be ready to seriously consider the necessary measures for this," Lavrov said.
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