Russian-NATO Cooperation in Fight Against ISIL 'Highly Unlikely'

On Thursday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance was concerned over intensified Russian military operations and cruise missile strikes on October 7 targeting Islamic State militant positions.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Cooperation between Russia and NATO over Syria is highly unlikely, Russia’s envoy to NATO said Friday.

"Taking into account that NATO has officially announced that the organization has no role in Syria, it’s highly unlikely there would be any cooperation with NATO in the fight against the Islamic State," Alexander Grushko said during a press conference in Moscow.

Russia has come a long way in its military contacts with Turkey on the Syria issue, and is actively working on the issue with the United States, the diplomat said.

"We have already announced that, for example, with Turkey, one of the main players and members of NATO, we have come a long way, having established a communication system through the General Staff, and we are actively working in this direction with the United States," Grushko said during a Moscow-Brussels video conference.