Military Response to Daesh Necessary, but Insufficient - Italian FM

The military operations against Daesh terrorist group, such as the ones in the Iraqi Mosul and Libya's Sirte is necessary, but insufficient to defeat terrorists, Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Thursday.

ROME (Sputnik) — He added that the military operations should be accompanied by political and cultural initiatives.

"It is necessary to have a military response to Daesh, and for these purposes the operations in Mosul and Sirte are carried out and similar response could take place in [Syria's] Raqqa. The success of these operations is absolutely essential, but at the same time, we should be conscious of the fact that only military activities are not sufficient [to tackle Daesh]," Gentiloni said speaking at NATO's event held in the Italian parliament.