June 2, 2015 - Paris, France - Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
The Honourable Rob Nicholson, P.C., Q.C., M.P. for Niagara Falls, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today concluded a successful visit to Paris, France, for the foreign ministers’ meeting of the anti-ISIS Coalition Small Group.
The coalition partners, including Canada, assessed the progress of military efforts and political and national reconciliation processes. Minister Nicholson highlighted the existential threats to ethnic and religious minorities in Salamiyeh, Syria, where the emerging alliance between the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and the Army of the Conquerors poses a crucial challenge for the coalition.
Coalition members endorsed action plans for four of the coalition working groups. These plans include stemming the flow of foreign terrorist fighters, disrupting ISIS’s sources of funding, counter-messaging and support for the stabilization of liberated areas. Furthermore, the partners endorsed the anti-ISIS coalition’s core vision statement: to provide unity of purpose in the fight against ISIS.
Minister Nicholson will next head to Jerusalem, where he will meet with President Reuven Rivlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss critical issues facing Israel, including Iran, Hamas, ISIS and other regional threats, and the Middle East peace process.
“ISIS is a violent threat not only to the region but also to the entire globe and all those who value freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law. The international community must concertedly degrade this ideological scourge and defend the principles that have made our nations great, prosperous and free. While our actions are showing results, much work remains to be done and Canada will continue to play its part.”
- The Honourable Rob Nicholson, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Johanna Quinney
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
343-203-1851
johanna.quinney@international.gc.ca
Media Relations Office
Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada
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