France, Russia call for intensified efforts to fight Daesh terrorists

The Turkish military Tuesday announced it shot down a Russian military aircraft near the Syrian border after it ignored multiple warnings and entered Turkish airspace, a charge Moscow immediately denied.

In an hour-long joint press conference on Tuesday in Washington, Mr Obama said: “The US and France stand united in total solidarity, to deliver justice to these terrorists… and defend our nations”. The United States, western European countries, Turkey and several Arab states are among the members.

Obama just returned to Washington on Monday after a trip to Turkey, Malaysia and the Philippines.

Russia and France will boost bilateral military and intelligence communications and monitor their effectiveness, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said Friday. The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attacks, and France responded days after with an intensified airstrike campaign in Syria against militant targets.

“We can not succumb to fear”, Obama said, after he discussed with Hollande counter-IS efforts.

“If we can make him move on one of those things all the better”, the official said.

In speeches last week, Obama lashed out at the governors and lawmakers who want to halt the USA efforts to help Syrian refugees, saying he “cannot think of a more potent recruitment tool for ISIL than some of the rhetoric that’s been coming out of here during the course of this debate”.

However, Hollande said France will not put troops on the ground in Syria to fight the IS.

Both Presidents want the support of Russian Federation.

“What we agreed, and this is important, is to strike only terrorists and Daesh (Islamic State) and to not strike forces that are fighting terrorism”.

However, there was no mention of other issues dividing Russian Federation and the West. Before he went to Moscow, Hollande said there would be no easing of sanctions against Russian Federation, imposed because of its aggression in Crimea and Ukraine.

Russia has been carrying out airstrikes on Islamic State group fighters in Syria since the end of September at the request of President Bashar Assad, Russia’s long-term ally.

But Russia denies that it’s killed civilians, and slammed reports that it has targeted medical facilities.

“It’s going to be hard and we should not be under any illusions”, Obama said.

Obama said, “We’ve got a coalition of 65 countries”.

He added that Hollande was “upbeat and can-do” while Obama was “discouraging and lawyerly” as he played down the threat of terrorism, opting for “Lake Michigan cool” while Hollande brought “Mediterranean heat”. “That would be extremely damaging”. Despite Obama’s stated vow to “degrade and destroy” the Islamic State, the USA and its allies are conducting markedly fewer air raids than one might expect.

Russian President called the attack “a stab in the back from accomplices of terrorists”.