The Daily Telegraph By

LONDON: David Cameron has agreed with Vladimir Putin to re-open talks over how to end the civil war Syria and stop the rise of Isil.

Vladimir Putin, the Russian President, called Mr Cameron yesterday (Monday) to congratulate him on his "major success" during the general election.

In the past, talks between Britain and Russia have broken down over Mr Putin's continued support for Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian dictator.

During the 30-minute conversation Mr Cameron said that Assad, whose regime has used chemical weapons, "cannot be part of the solution". However, they agreed it was in both their interests to find a "solution" to the civil war and restart talks between national security advisers.

Mr Cameron said there are "deep differences" over the Ukraine conflict but that the priority must be the implementation of the ceasefire agreement. A Downing Street spokesman said the Prime Minister "concluded the call by noting that the UK and Russia had worked successfully together on the Iranian nuclear issue" and hoped "we could find other issues where the UK and Russia could work together on matters of mutual interest."

Lord Dannatt, former head of the Army, urged the Government at the weekend to "think the previously unthinkable" and consider sending troops to fight Isil in Iraq and Syria.