Sunday, September 27, 2015

US, Russia Both Have the Will to Counter ISIL Together

US Secretary of State John Kerry, left, meets with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015, in New York

© AP Photo/ Jason DeCrow
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Despite disagreements with his US counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the two countries presidents have the will to work together against ISIL.

US and Russia have the will to work together, despite many disagreements, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said after his meeting with John Kerry at the United Nations Headquarters.
Lavrov also noted that there are many disagreements, such as that the US believes that it does not need UN Security Council permission to act against ISIL in Syria, while Russia considers it a violation of international law. In addition,
"The will to worth together along both the line of diplomatic bodies and the military line is there. I think that the more these questions are discussed on the level of professionals, the easier it will be to solve the most difficult issue that stands before all of us," Lavrov said.
The two top diplomats initially issued contradictory statements as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the coordination center being created in Iraq seeks to unite parties in the fight against ISIL while US State Secretary John Kerry charged that coordination is not happening. "We coordinate the activity [with partners] in the fight against ISIL," the minister said ahead of the meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry, commenting on the center’s goal.
After the meeting, Kerry charged that the efforts in the fight against ISIL are not being coordinated among all parties.
"I think the critical thing is that all of the efforts need to be coordinated. This is not yet coordinated. I think we have concerns about how we are going to go forward," Kerry said.
The two top diplomats agreed during their meeting Sunday that they could meet again on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly if necessary, a source in the Russian delegation said.
Лавров-Керри в Нью-Йорке
Posted by Мария Захарова on Sunday, 27 September 2015
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that he had personally informed the heads of Turkey, Jordan and Saudi Arabia about the establishment of a coordination structure to fight the IS militants, adding that Washington was informed about it as well. The Islamic State is a Sunni jihadist group that seized vast lands in Iraq and Syria in 2014. A US-led international coalition has been conducting airstrikes against IS militants in Iraq since August, 2014 and in Syria since September, 2014.
ISIL-affiliated groups also operate in Yemen, Libya, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

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