WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - U.S. President Barack Obama said Sunday that acts of terrorism will not stop the world from taking urgent action on global climate change at talks in Paris next month.
The United States and its coalition allies would ultimately destroy the Islamic State (IS), but the world should not show fear of terrorism, Obama said at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur at a summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or ASEAN.
'I think it is absolutely vital for every country, every leader to send a signal that the viciousness of a handful of killers isn't going to stop the world from doing vital business and that Paris -- one of the most beautiful, enticing cities in the world -- is not going to be cowed by the violent, demented actions of a few,' said Obama.
'We do not succumb to fear. That's the primary power that these terrorists have over us. They cannot strike a mortal blow against the United States, or against France, or against a country like Malaysia. But they can make people fearful. And that's understandable, because that could have been us,' said Obama.
Obama raised doubts about the prospect of forming an expanded alliance of world powers to battle Islamic State, saying that he doesn't know whether Russia will shift its focus to combat extremists.
Obama, noted, 'It will be helpful if Russia directs its focus on ISIL, and I do think that as a consequence of ISIL claiming responsibility for bringing down their plane, there is an increasing awareness on the part of President Putin that ISIL poses a greater threat to them than anything else in the region. The question at this point is whether they can make the strategic adjustment that allows them to be effective partners with us and the other 65 countries who are already part of the counter-ISIL campaign. And we don't know that yet.'
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2015 AFX News
