Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said he is not opposed to the activities of the U.S.-led coalition fighting against the Islamic State organization, but he still believes that this coalition ought to act through the UN Security Council.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said he is not opposed to the activities of the U.S.-led coalition fighting against the Islamic State organization, but he still believes that this coalition ought to act through the UN Security Council.

Russia favors efforts based on international law, he said in an interview with Bloomberg.

Certainly, Moscow is not opposed to what this coalition is doing because it is trying to weaken this terrorist organization, but there was an opportunity to fight against this group even before this coalition appeared, Lavrov said.

The Russian minister also believes that Washington is making a mistake when it refuses to coordinate the international coalition's air strikes against IS targets in Syria with the Syrian authorities.

In Russia's opinion, it should be done, but, regrettably, the U.S. cannot accept this for ideological reasons, Lavrov said.

When asked whether or not Russia would support the start of a possible U.S.-led ground operation aimed at restoring stability in the Middle East, Lavrov asked the journalists whether they really thought that only the U.S. had the armed forces able to accomplish this task.

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