US military not planning to leave Syria until Geneva process success: Mattis

WASHINGTON - 14 November 2017: US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that a US-led coalition will forge ahead in its fight against Daesh terrorist group in Syria and Iraq until a UN peace process makes further headway.

In a press conference held at the US Department of Defense headquarters, Mattis noted that "we're not just going to walk away right now before the Geneva process has cracked", Sputnik news agency reported on Tuesday.

“You need to do something about this mess now, not just fight the military part of it and then say good luck on the rest,” Mattis pointed out, adding that the coalition's goal had always been to fight Daesh while finding a diplomatic solution to end the Syrian civil war.

"We are going to make sure we set the conditions for a diplomatic solution," he said. His comments come after the US and Russia issued a joint statement Saturday saying there was "no military solution" to the Syrian conflict.

The statement added that both presidents affirmed their commitment to Syria's sovereignty, unity, independence, territorial integrity and non-sectarian character, while calling on all parties to participate in UN-led talks in Geneva.