MOSCOW, Russia – Russia's chief of general staff Valery Gerasimov held talks Thursday, November 19, with French counterpart Pierre de Villiers on combating the Islamic State group in Syria, in the first such contact since the start of the Ukraine conflict last year.
Gerasimov and Villiers "discussed on the phone the coordination of military troops' actions against IS terrorists in Syria," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement, adding that the conversation lasted an hour. – Rappler.com