US Vice President Joseph Biden answered Kommersant's question

US Vice President Joseph Biden, answering a question from Kommersant on the sidelines of the 70th session of the UN General Assembly, made it clear: Washington considers the threats posed by the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group banned in Russia and from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Thus, it became completely clear that the meeting between Russian and US Presidents Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama that took place in New York did not lead to a change in positions on the Syrian issue. With details from New York - Kommersant correspondent PAVEL TARASENKO.

“We have two battles - with the Islamic State and Bashar al-Assad, who must leave,” said Joseph Biden, answering a question from Kommersant about the possibility of cooperation with Russia on the Syrian issue.

Vladimir Putin and Barack Obama did not discuss the coalition against IS

The US Vice President made the comment as he left the conference room at the UN Secretariat building, where a multilateral meeting on the fight against Islamists was being held, organized by the Americans. Among others, US President Barack Obama took part in it. He said that the fight against IS should include various components: both military and economic, as well as support for democratic processes in the countries of the Middle East.

Moscow was skeptical about the meeting. In particular, the dissatisfaction of Russian diplomats, according to Kommersant, was caused by the fact that among the meeting participants, along with UN members, there was also a representative of Kosovo - this republic is not a UN member.

Let us recall that earlier Russian President Vladimir Putin put forward an initiative to create the broadest possible coalition to fight the Islamic State. Moscow claims that an effective fight against terrorists is impossible without the involvement of Syrian government troops. At the same time, the Russian authorities - in particular, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov - have repeatedly noted: the fate of Bashar al-Assad must be decided by the Syrians themselves, and no one else.

Joseph Biden's statement confirms that there have been no changes in Washington's position, and the presidents of the two countries have failed to reach a compromise on the Syrian issue.

Immediately after his meeting with Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin said that he would be in Syria

When it was night on September 29 in Moscow, the Russian President met face to face with US President Barack Obama and then answered questions from Russian journalists. Kommersant special correspondent ANDREY KOLESNIKOV talks about how Mr. Putin’s patience finally ran out in the night.

Russia and the United States began to discuss more the fight against terrorism and the future of Syria

On September 18, the first conversation between the Russian and US defense ministers since the beginning of the Ukrainian crisis took place. But the prospects for cooperation are complicated by disagreements over the fate of the Syrian leader. The United States is seeking the resignation of Bashar Assad and is against providing him with any assistance, and the Russian authorities do not rule out that they will consider the issue of military support for Syria - if Mr. Assad applies. Kommersant found out what Russian military specialists already in Syria were doing. Read more

“We have two battles - with ISIS and Bashar al-Assad”