"In Lega Nord we believe that the only way to fight the Islamic State is to stop buying the oil that Daesh is selling [to] Europe through Turkey and crush terrorist with the only possible method there is — a ground military intervention," Salvini, who is currently in Moscow on an official visit, said.
According to Salvini, a broader international coalition should be created to unite all countries "and this alliance should take part in the ground operation on the Syrian soil under UN auspices and based on UN Security Council resolutions and international laws."
A US-led international coalition of over 60 countries has been carrying out airstrikes on Daesh positions in Iraq and Syria since 2014, without a permission from Damascus or the UN Security Council.
Russia has been carrying out separate precision airstrikes against Daesh in Syria since September 30, at the request of President Bashar Assad. The Daesh group is outlawed in Russia, as well as a range of other states.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly urged the international community to create a united antiterrorist front, which would act in accordance with international law and under the auspices of the UN but ruled out participation of any Russian ground troops in operations against the jihadists.
