French President Francois Hollande and Russia's Vladimir Putin agreed to share intelligence information and cooperate on selecting targets in the fight against ISIS, raising hope for closer ties between Moscow and the U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition following the Paris terror attacks, reports NBC News.
Putin said that Russia is ready to more broadly coordinate its military action in Syria with the U.S.-led coalition, but he harshly criticized Washington for failing to prevent the downing of a Russian warplane by NATO member Turkey. Hollande said Tuesday's shoot-down of the Russian jet was a "serious incident, obviously regrettable" that underlined the need for closer coordination between the nations which are fighting ISIS.
"It is crucial in that period to avoid any risk, any incident, and prevent any escalation," Hollande said at a news conference following the Kremlin talks.
"The only goal we must have is fighting Daesh and neutralize the terrorists, there is no other goal," he said, referring to the ISIS by its Arab acronym.
ISIS has claimed responsibility for the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris, as well as deadly bombings in Beirut and the downing of a Russian airplane on Oct. 31 that killed all 224 people on board over Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
Hollande said he and Putin agreed to "increase information and intelligence exchange, intensify airstrikes against Daesh, which will be subject to a coordination to increase their efficiency" and make sure that "the forces combatting Daesh and other terrorist groups must not be targeted by our actions."
Putin specified that Russia is ready to both cooperate bilaterally with France and with the U.S.-led coalition as a whole on the choice of targets, so that to "determine the territories which could be struck, as well as those that must be spared, exchange information on various issues and coordinate action on the battlefield."
Read more of this Associated Press report published by NBC News.