President Vladimir Putin yesterday ordered Russia’s armed forces to co-ordinate with the French military as “allies” on a joint action plan in Syria, signalling a growing rapprochement after the terror attacks on Paris and downing of a Russian airliner.
Mr Putin’s order, coupled with planned visits by French president Fran?ois Hollande to Moscow and Washington next week, suggested a shift in strategy over Syria in the face of the shared threat from Islamist terrorism.
It also signalled that Mr Putin’s calls since September for a “grand coalition” to fight Isis might be moving closer to reality — along with his hopes of easing Moscow’s isolation from the west since its military intervention in Ukraine last year.
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