Updated 11:42 a.m. Moscow Time
MOSCOW, September 12 (RIA Novosti) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will attend an international conference on Iraq in Paris next week, the Russian Foreign Ministry's information and press department said Friday.
"Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will take part in the conference on peace and security in Iraq, organized by France and due to take place in Paris on September 15," the department said.
The issue of security in Iraq comes in light of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group's activity in the region where it continues its advance, threatening not only the security of Syria and Iraq, but also that of the international community.
On Thursday, it was announced that Gulf Cooperation Council members, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, together with Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon agreed to join the US-led coalition aimed at defeating the IS.
On September 10, US President Barack Obama announced plans to defeat the IS. He said Washington would be extending its airstrikes from Iraq to Syria and would provide support, equipment and training to Kurdish and Iraqi forces and Syria's opposition in order to respond to the threat.
The Islamic State, also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS) or Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), has been fighting the Syrian government since 2012. In June 2014, it launched an offensive in Iraq and seized vast areas in both countries, proclaiming an Islamic caliphate on the territories under its control.
