PARIS:
US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday that he and his
Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov have agreed to step up intelligence
sharing over the Islamic State (IS) group.
"I suggested to
Foreign Minister Lavrov that we intensify intelligence cooperation with
respect to ISIL and other counter-terrorism challenges of the region and
we agreed to do so," Kerry said using an alternative name for the IS
jihadists.
He said that during a three-hour-and-15-minute
meeting in Paris, the two top diplomats had discussed "whether Russia
could do more to support Iraqi security forces" fighting IS.
The hardline group has seized large swathes of territory in both Iraq and Syria.
"The foreign minister indeed acknowledged their preparedness to help
with respect to arms, weapons, they are doing that now, they already
have provided some, and also potentially with the training and advising
aspects," said Kerry.
He said he and Lavrov recognised "that ISIL has absolutely no place in the 21st century".
"No decent country by any definition can support the horrors
perpetrated by ISIL. And no civilised country should shirk its
responsibility to stand up and be part of the effort to stamp out this
disease."
For his part, Lavrov said that while Moscow and
Washington still had "differences of opinion" they both had a particular
role to play in resolving global problems.
"They must cooperate more effectively, especially in the fight against terrorism."
