The US and its European allies cannot agree on what to do with thousands of jihadists imprisoned in Syria. Washington called the Paris proposal to judge the militants in Iraq "irresponsible," AFP reported.
High-ranking officials from over 30 states promised to strengthen coordination in the campaign against the ISIS at a meeting in Washington proposed by France, which was particularly concerned about the decision of President Donald Trump to withdraw US troops from Syria. Trump's decision allowed Turkey to invade northern Syria to attack Kurdish rebels, who were US allies in the fight against IS.
“Coalition members must take back the thousands of foreign terrorist fighters in custody and impose accountability for the atrocities they have perpetrated,” Pompeo said.
But Nathan Sales, the State Department’s counterterrorism coordinator, admitted that “there is, candidly, a difference of opinion about the best way to resolve this problem.”
“The United States thinks that it's inappropriate to ask Iraq in particular to shoulder the additional burden of foreign fighters, particularly from Europe," Sales told reporters after the one-day meeting. "It would be irresponsible for any country to expect Iraq to solve that problem for them. We think there should be a sense of urgency to repatriate now while we still can.”
European countries, such as France and UK, do not want the return of battle-hardened ISIS supporters, which claimed responsibility for many brutal attacks on civilians.
French FM Jean-Yves Le Drian, in a statement ahead of the Washington meeting, said he would take up “the essential question of maintaining the certain and lasting detention” of the extremists. France wants to highlight that "nothing is called into question and that crimes they have committed in Iraq and Syria do not remain unpunished," the foreign ministry said.
European governments have revoked the citizenship of a number of citizens due to alleged ties with the ISIS. Such a move is virtually impossible in the US.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking with Pompeo, admitted that there are disagreements between the members of the alliance over Syria, where the situation "remains fragile and difficult."
