“We have agreed to strengthen our exchange of military information, both on the strikes and the location of the different groups (in Syria),” French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said following talks with Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu.
Le Drian told the journalists that he and Shoigu discussed an issue “that was talked through earlier – the coordination between our militaries in order to avoid confrontations [in Syria].”
The two ministers agreed to hold similar bilateral meetings “on a regularly basis,” he added.
Le Drian said they had identified a method to assess the state of ISIL and other “terrorist groups” following air strikes conducted by both the Russian and French air forces.
“This is not being allied, this is coordinating,” Le Drian said. “The goal of these information exchanges is to assess the scope of actions that can be considered.”
The French minister also said that no military and technical cooperation deals were discussed between the sides after France failed to fulfill the contract to supply Russia with two Mistral helicopter carriers earlier this year.
Le Drian said that the atmosphere at the meeting was “very friendly” and that he had a “very positive feeling” after talking to Shoigu.
The Russian Defense Ministry later released a statement saying that the ministers “acknowledged the presence of a common enemy in the face of Islamic State and confirmed their readiness to counter it together.”
“Sergey Shoigu stressed that only by joining the efforts of all the concerned nations, one can eliminate the terrorist threat to the people of Paris, Moscow, London and other European cities,” it said.
The two sides also agreed to share intelligence on foreign fighters having joined the ranks of Takfiri groups in Iraq and Syria, a figure that has more than doubled since last year to at least 27,000, according to a recent report by an intelligence consultancy.
Monday’s talks were only the second bilateral meeting between Le Drian and Shoigu, as relations between the two ministers were suspended after Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in March 2014.
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