It is Vital to Maintain Dialogue With US on Pullout From Syria - French Minister

PARIS (Sputnik) - Paris believes it is vital to maintaining close contact with Washington on conditions of the US troops’ withdrawal from Syria, French Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly has stated, following her first meeting with US Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan.

"Last night, I had first talks with my new US counterpart, Patrick Shanahan. Political dialogue on conditions of the withdrawal of the US troops from Syria is necessary, and we will continue it in the coming days and weeks", Parly wrote on Twitter.

Première prise de contact hier soir avec mon nouvel homologue américain, Patrick Shanahan. Le dialogue politique sur les modalités du retrait militaire américain de Syrie est indispensable, nous le poursuivrons dans les jours et les semaines à venir.

— Florence Parly (@florence_parly) 8 января 2019 г.

READ MORE: Turkey Reportedly to Ask US to Hand Over Military Bases in Syria

The statement comes after US President Donald Trump announced in December that his country would pull out its forces from Syria because the  Daesh* terror group had been defeated. The move has prompted Defence Secretary James Mattis' resignation. Mattis' deputy, Shanahan, was appointed as acting defence secretary starting from January 1.

*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist group banned in Russia