Int'l coalition holds meeting in Rome to discuss eradicating IS

ROME, June 28 (KUNA) -- Foreign ministers of the international coalition combating the so-called Islamic State (IS) hold a conference on Monday to renew their commitment to working together in order to continue combating, defeating and eliminating this terrorist group.
The conference, which is co-chaired by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio, features 40 foreign ministers, including Kuwait's top diplomat Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Al-Nasser Al-Sabah who arrived in Rome yesterday.
The meeting, hosted by Italy for the first time after the last meeting in February 2019, includes NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, High Representative of the European Union Josep Borrell and some African countries as observers.
According to Italy's Foreign Ministry, the meeting is set to renew the commitment of coalition members to defeating IS and preventing any attempt for its recovery.
The ministers reaffirm the importance of maintaining pledge, including financial, to achieving stability in the liberated areas from the IS in Iraq and Syria.
The discussions are set to focus on the strategies to maintain pressure on the remaining IS hotbeds in Iraq and Syria, and combating its networks, especially in Africa.
The ministers are expected to evaluate the coalition commitment to achieving steadiness and restoring public services to the liberated areas from the IS.
They discuss confronting the financial and economic infrastructure and to addressing the flow of foreign fighters across the border, in addition to the military campaign in Iraq and Syria.
On the sidelines of the congress, a meeting will be held on Syria under the presidency of Blinken, who will take part in the G20 foreign ministers. (end) mn.hm