Germany to offer military aid to help fight against IS

A defense expert from German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) told media earlier in the day that Germany would become “a more active contributor than it is now”.

“It’s not possible to fight Islamic State with words; you have to fight them militarily”.

“Today the government took hard but important and necessary decisions”, German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen told reporters after meeting with legislators. In brief statements before the dinner, Hollande asked Germany to do “even more in the fight against Daesh in Syria and Iraq”, using the Arab acronym for Islamic State, which is also referred to as ISIS and ISIL.

Germany has moved to support France by pledging aircraft for the counter-Islamic State mission in Syria and troops for the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).

Hollande will now head to Moscow on Thursday to press his case for an anti-IS alliance to President Vladimir Putin, after receiving few firm commitments from President Barack Obama in Washington.

The German mission in Syria however is expected to focus primarily on reconnaissance and will not involve participation in direct air strikes against Islamic State, German media reported citing the country’s officials.

Germany is ready to offer France “any kind of help” in the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks, Merkel said alongside Hollande, though she didn’t specify what that might be.

“We will be stronger than the terror, ‘ she said, pledging to stand ‘at France’s side”.

“If the French president asks me to think about what we can do beyond that, then it’s our task to consider it – and we will react very quickly”, Merkel said at that time. “Terrorism is our common enemy”.

“There are risks. It is a risky operation, no doubt”.

Germany will also support the air campaign by providing “urgently needed” tanker aircraft, she said.

An associate of the National Committee of the Bundestag as well as the Left Party, Sahra Wagenknecht, raised issues.