Russia has called on U.S.-led antiterrorism coalition to cooperate with Damascus in the deterrence of the ISIL threat, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.

Russia has called on U.S.-led antiterrorism coalition to cooperate with Damascus in the deterrence of the ISIL threat, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.

"We are still urging [anti-ISIL] coalition members to begin collaboration with the Syrian government, the Syrian army, and foreign ministers of a number of European states have spoken in favor of this," Lavrov said at a press conference in Moscow on Sept.11.

"ISIL cannot be defeated with air strikes only, it is necessary to interact with ground forces, and the most efficient and powerful force fighting ISIL is the Syrian army," the minister said.

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