Moscow hopes list of participants in coordination center in Baghdad to grow

MOSCOW, September 29. /TASS/. Russia expects that more participants will join in the operation of the information and coordination center for struggle against the Islamic State in Baghdad, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov has told the media.

"President Putin said this information coordination center is not an isolated institution. It is open absolutely to all," he said.

Peskov recalled that US specialists had been invited to join the Baghdad center.

"Regrettably, they were absent from the first meetings," he said. "President Putin still hopes that other parties will agree to participate in the center’s activities."

Earlier, a military-diplomatic source told TASS Russia, Syria, Iran and Iraq had created a special information center to coordinate efforts in the struggle against the Islamic State.

"The center’s successful operation will create in the near future the proper conditions for establishing on its basis a coordinating committee with the aim to plan operations by and control the armed forces of these four countries fighting against the Islamic State," he said.

According to the source, the center in Baghdad will unite officials from the general staffs of Russia, Syria, Iran and Iraq.

"The centre’s main functions will be to gather, process, summarize and analyze the current information about the situation in the Middle East in the context of struggle against the Islamic State, its distribution and prompt transfer to the general staffs of the countries concerned," he explained.

According to the source, the information centre will be led by the officers of the four countries’ armed forces for three-month periods on the rotation basis.

"In accordance with the achieved agreements Iraq will run the centre for the three months to come," the source said.