West vows to crush IS �power centres�

AFP, PARIS: Western leaders injected fresh urgency into the fight against the Islamic State group Wednesday, vowing to destroy its “power centres”, while Russia announced crucial Syrian peace talks would begin within days.
After meeting with key allies in Paris, US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter vowed to crush what he called the IS “cancer” by “collapsing its two power centres in Raqa and Mosul” and combating “the metastasis of the ISIL tumour worldwide.”
At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced Syria peace talks would start “in the next few days” after he met US Secretary of State John Kerry in Zurich.
Iran also said it would throw its weight behind a political solution, with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif telling the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland “there is no military solution to the crisis.” Russia and Iran are accused of propping up their ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Western powers say Moscow is indiscriminately bombing Syrian opposition forces fighting IS.
“The Russians are on the wrong track strategically and also in some cases tactically,” Carter said.
“We don’t have a basis for broader cooperation (with Russia),” Carter said.
Lavrov, by contrast, insisted Russia was willing to “more closely coordinate our actions” with the coalition to facilitate aid deliveries in Syria. The meeting in Paris comprised defence ministers from Australia, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the United States.
Carter announced an unprecedented meeting of 26 defence ministers in the anti-IS coalition, plus Iraq, to be held in Brussels on February 11 and warned he would demand greater effort. “Every nation must come prepared to discuss further contributions to the fight,” he said.
Carter has repeatedly urged other countries in the approximately 60-member coalition to step up participation in the military effort, particularly Arab and Gulf countries that are more focused on fighting Iran-backed forces in Yemen.
Ministers were keen to tout progress in the campaign.
“Daesh is retreating, it is time to increase our joint efforts by implementing a coherent military strategy,” French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters. Daesh is another name for IS, which is also called ISIL. IS has lost around a quarter of its self-proclaimed caliphate, including the Iraqi city of Ramadi to US-backed local forces last month.
A Britain-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said on Tuesday that IS has announced plans to halve the monthly pay of its members in Syria and Iraq.
The financial strain could be a result of intensified air strikes on its oil infrastructure, a key source of revenue for the group.
Separately, Colonel Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the US-led anti-IS coalition, on Wednesday said nine strikes in Iraq and Syria in recent months had led to the destruction of “tens of millions” of dollars in IS cash, much of it derived from illicit oil sales.

 

West vows to crush IS �power centres�

AFP, PARIS: Western leaders injected fresh urgency into the fight against the Islamic State group Wednesday, vowing to destroy its power centres, while Russia announced crucial Syrian peace talks would begin within days. After meeting with key allies in Paris, US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter vowed to crush what he called the IS cancer by collapsing its two power centres in Raqa and Mosul and combating the metastasis of the ISIL tumour worldwide. At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced Syria peace talks would start in the next few days after he met US Secretary of State John Kerry in Zurich. Iran also said it would throw its weight behind a political solution, with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif telling the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland there is no military solution to the crisis. Russia and Iran are accused of propping up their ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Western powers say Moscow is indiscriminately bombing Syrian opposition forces fighting IS. The Russians are on the wrong track strategically and also in some cases tactically, Carter said. We dont have a basis for broader cooperation (with Russia), Carter said. Lavrov, by contrast, insisted Russia was willing to more closely coordinate our actions with the coalition to facilitate aid deliveries in Syria. The meeting in Paris comprised defence ministers from Australia, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the United States. Carter announced an unprecedented meeting of 26 defence ministers in the anti-IS coalition, plus Iraq, to be held in Brussels on February 11 and warned he would demand greater effort. Every nation must come prepared to discuss further contributions to the fight, he said. Carter has repeatedly urged other countries in the approximately 60-member coalition to step up participation in the military effort, particularly Arab and Gulf countries that are more focused on fighting Iran-backed forces in Yemen. Ministers were keen to tout progress in the campaign. Daesh is retreating, it is time to increase our joint efforts by implementing a coherent military strategy, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters. Daesh is another name for IS, which is also called ISIL. IS has lost around a quarter of its self-proclaimed caliphate, including the Iraqi city of Ramadi to US-backed local forces last month. A Britain-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said on Tuesday that IS has announced plans to halve the monthly pay of its members in Syria and Iraq. The financial strain could be a result of intensified air strikes on its oil infrastructure, a key source of revenue for the group. Separately, Colonel Steve Warren, a Baghdad-based spokesman for the US-led anti-IS coalition, on Wednesday said nine strikes in Iraq and Syria in recent months had led to the destruction of tens of millions of dollars in IS cash, much of it derived from illicit oil sales.