France has signalled a softening of its stance towards Syrian president Bashar al-Assad by suggesting the regime’s soldiers could fight alongside opposition groups against Isis, the Islamist militant group responsible for killing 130 people in the Paris attacks, reports The Financial Times.
Laurent Fabius, French foreign minister, said that winning back Raqqa, Isis’s self-styled administrative capital, was a priority for western powers. This would require a co-ordinated assault with boots on the ground, potentially including soldiers from the Syrian regime, he told RTL radio.
“Two sorts of measures are required: the bombings, and troops on the ground, which could include Free Syrian army forces, Sunni Arab forces and — why not? — regime forces,” said Mr Fabius.
The comments highlight a shift in the position of France, which has, up until now, considered Mr Assad as a pariah.
In 2013, French president François Hollande sought to bomb the regime’s chemicals storage plants after it became clear to Paris that Mr Assad was using chemical weapons against his own people. France fell short of sending jets after the US and the UK backtracked.
Mr Hollande has since insisted that the Syrian leader could not be part of a political transition in Syria, reckoning that it would foster divisions rather than reconciliation.
But the attacks on Paris seem to have changed the priorities for France, which has sought help from Russia, a longtime ally of Mr Assad, to intensify the fight against Isis.
Read more of this report from The Financial Times.
See also: France's U-turn on Syria