Obama, King Abdullah discuss Syria, Iraq IS in White House meeting
Date
2/24/2016 6:27:06 PM
(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) WASHINGTON Feb 24 (KUNA) -- In a joint Oval Office appearance after their meeting on Wednesday President Barack Obama and King Abdullah of Jordan said they discussed Syria Iraq and joint efforts to combat the so-called Islamic State (IS)."We have seen progress in pushing back against ISIL in territory both in Iraq and now in some portions of Syria" Obama said. "But a lot of work remains to be done. And so the coordination between our nations and other coalition partners is absolutely critical. And Jordan has made enormous contribution." With respect to Syria Obama said he briefed Abdullah on the conversations he had with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Syria "and the cessation of hostilities agreement that has been put in place." "We are very cautious about raising expectations on this" the President said. "The situation on ground is difficult but we have seen modest progress over the course of the last week or so with respect to humanitarian access to populations that are threatened." "If over the next several weeks we can see some lessening of the violence that has been wracking that country then that provides us a basis to build a longer-term cease-fire both in the north and the south and allows us to move forward on the political transition that ultimately is going to be necessary to bring an end to the civil war in Syria" Obama said.The Jordanian people "have been extraordinarily generous in accommodating the hundreds of thousands of Syrians who have been fleeing the fighting and the United States is the leading contributor to humanitarian efforts to house and provide basic care to these refugees" Obama said. "But the numbers continue to grow. And I expressed to His Majesty our commitment to make sure that as they continue to be open to helping people in need they will have a strong partner in the United States and we will make sure that our money is where our mouth is in terms of looking after these refugee populations." Abdullah said "We are all working together as part of the international team to try to find as the President said a political solution. Yet at the same time the threat of Daesh is one that has taken some of our consultations today on how do we defeat Daesh as quickly as possible -- not only in Syria but also to reach out to our Iraqi brethren to make sure that they too are part of this struggle against extremism." "I do think that we are moving in the right direction" the King said. "The coordination with the United States is exceptional." (end) rm.rk
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