PARIS
The Syrian regime has clearly given air support to Daesh, Turkey's foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Mevlut Cavusoglu's remarks came after a meeting of foreign ministers in Paris of the international coalition set up to counter Daesh in Paris.
"We have always been saying that the regime [of Bashar al-Assad] and Daesh are in cooperation. Recently, we started to see it clearly. The U.S. State Department spokeswoman also said this yesterday," said Cavusoglu.
Marie Harf said on Monday there were reports indicating "the regime [was] making airstrikes in support of ISIL's [Daesh] advance on Aleppo, aiding the extremists in their attacks on the Syrian population."
"The regime is at the root of all problems. How can this be stopped?" asked Cavusoglu.
He added that the train-and-equip program for Syrian opposition forces is not enough on its own. But, he did not give any further details for his suggestions.
About the program, Cavusoglu said: "We cannot totally solve the issue in Syria solely via train-and-equip program. It must be supportive."
Turkey inked an agreement with the U.S. in February to train and equip moderate Syrian opposition forces as part of the U.S.-led coalition’s effort to battle Daesh.
The minister announced that the program will start in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan soon.
Syria has been gripped by an internal conflict that has killed more than 220,000 people, including an excess of 10,000 children, according to the U.N.
