Paris--The anti-IS coalition will meet in Paris Tuesday after a series of shock battlefield gains by the jihadists, with Iraq under pressure to step up its fight by being more inclusive of the Sunni minority.
The main focus of the meeting will be the crisis in Iraq, where the Islamic State group seized the city of Ramadi two weeks ago in the biggest blow to the US-led coalition since it began bombarding jihadist positions in August.
US Secretary of State John Kerry will take part in the talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and other diplomats "remotely" after breaking his leg in a cycling accident, the State Department said.
"We are going to discuss Iraq, how to get Daesh (IS) to retreat," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said last week, warning Baghdad over sectarian tensions which experts say are impeding the country's ability to counter the jihadists.
"We engaged militarily but with a political condition: that the government be inclusive, that means bringing everyone together, Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds."
"I am saying clearly that this needs to be better respected from now on," Fabius said in separate comments to parliament.
French foreign ministry spokesman Romain Nadal said that while the talks would centre on Iraq, "taking into account the battlefield and the overlapping of the situation, Syria will also be discussed."
According to a French diplomatic source, ministers from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates are expected to be among 24 participants at the meeting.
AFP
