PARIS: Islamic State is losing territory in the Middle East and the Western-backed coalition is making inroads against the group, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday.
"The level of cooperation could not be higher. We agreed to exchange more information and I'm convinced that over the course of the next weeks, Daesch will feel greater pressure. They are feeling it today. They felt it yesterday. They felt it in the past weeks. We gained more territory. Daesch has less territory," he said, referring to the Arabic acronym for Islamic State.
Kerry, who confirmed French President Francois Hollande would travel to Washington next week to meet US President Barack Obama, was speaking in Paris after a meeting with Hollande. He spoke as France stepped up air strikes in Syria in the wake of killings claimed by Islamic State in the French capital on Friday.