"ISIL [Daesh] has not had a major successful operation in either Iraq or Syria in more than a year. In short, ISIL remains on the defensive, our coalition is on the offensive, and even though this will continue to be a very difficult fight, I’m confident that we will win and ISIL will lose," Obama said in an interview with the La Repubblica newspaper, published on Tuesday.
He stressed that on the ground in Iraq, Daesh had lost more than half of the territory it once held, while the Iraqi forces launched on Monday operation to liberate Mosul.
"Our coalition continues to be relentless against ISIL (Daesh) on every front. Coalition airstrikes continue to hammer ISIL targets. We continue to take out senior ISIL leaders and commanders so they can never threaten us again. We continue to hit their oil infrastructure and financial networks, depriving them of money to fund their terror," the US president added.
"Preventing lone individuals and small cells of terrorists from killing innocent people in our countries remains one of our most difficult challenges. Even as each of our countries work to thwart attacks at home, we have to do more together, including sharing information and intelligence, stopping foreign terrorist fighters from traveling and strengthening border security," the president stressed.
As the interview coincided with the US visit of Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, the US leader also mentioned Italy’s contribution to the anti-terror fight. Obama called Italy "a vital member of the coalition," adding that it was one of the largest contributors of trainers and advisers on the ground in Iraq. He emphasized the role of Italian diplomacy in the process leading to the formation of the Libyan Government of National Accord as well.
