MOSCOW, September 29./TASS/. Islamic State has become a unique terrorist organization as it is going global, Russian President Vladimir Putin told US journalist Charlie Rose in an interview with CBS and PBS, noting that certain forces were using Islamic State to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
"It (the terrorist organization) has become unique because it is going global. They have set a goal, which is to establish a caliphate on the territory stretching from Portugal to Pakistan. They already lay claims to the sacred Islamic sites like Mecca and Medina. Their actions and their activities reach far beyond the boundaries of the territories under their control," the president said in the interview.
In reply to the question about strategy recommended by Moscow in fight against that evil, Putin said "I have already said, we should help President al-Assad's army".
"And there is no one else at all who is fighting ISIS on the ground, except for President al-Assad's army. So, I want you, your audience to finally realise that no one except for al-Assad's army is fighting against ISIS or other terrorist organisations in Syria, no one else is fighting them on Syrian territory," the Russian leader repeated.
"Minor airstrikes, including those by the United States aircraft, do not resolve the issue in essence; in fact, they do not resolve it at all," he said. "The work should be conducted on the spot after these strikes and it should all be strictly coordinated," he explained.
"We need to understand what strikes are needed, where we need to strike and who will advance on the ground after these strikes. In Syria, there is no other force except for al-Assad's army," Putin noted.
"Russia will not take part in any field operations on the territory of Syria or in other states; at least, we do not plan it for now," he stressed. "But we are thinking of how to intensify our work both with President al-Assad and our partners in other countries," he continued.
"…Our armed forces will not take part in hostilities directly and they will not fight. I mean war, combat operations on the territory, the infantry and motorised units," the Russian leader explained.
"There would be no war if these terrorist groups were not supplied with arms and money from the outside," Putin said. "It seems to me that somebody wants to use either certain units of ISIS or ISIS in general in order to overthrow al-Assad and only then think about how to get rid of ISIS. This task is difficult and, in my opinion, practically impossible," the Russian leader said.
Putin said he directly connected a growing flow of refugees with the strengthening of terrorists. "Why do you think that the Syrian refugees flee only as a result of President al-Assad’s actions to protect his country? Why don't you think that the refugees flee from the atrocities of terrorists, from ISIS, who decapitate people, burn them alive, drown them alive and destroy cultural monuments?" he asked.
"People flee from them too, they flee mainly from them. And from the war - this is clear," Putin added.
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