Only effective coordination can eliminate IS

That fighting terrorism is high on the agenda of the two-day G20 summit, which began in Antalya, Turkey, on Sunday, high-lights the global security threat posed by terrorists, especially the Islamic State group. On Friday evening, at least 120 people were killed and hundreds injured in coordinated attacks in Paris.

As the G20 summit host, Turkey is now at the forefront of the fight against the IS group, following the spate of deadly IS-led attacks on the country since July, including the twin suicide bombings in the capital Ankara in October that killed 102 people. The Turkish government has had to change its vague stance on regional terrorism and increase its efforts to combat the IS extremists by, among other measures, allowing the United States to use its military bases to bomb the marauding Islamic militants and their strongholds.

The US-led coalition against IS has made some progress in its goal of eliminating IS leaders in the past more than one year, but it has still not been able to stop other terrorists from spreading out in guerrilla units to retake some places in Syria and Iraq.

As Washington's bombing tactic hit a dead end, the Russian air force in tandem with its Syrian counterpart has destroyed a number of IS-controlled infrastructure facilities since the end of September. And despite US President Barack Obama's promise that no US ground forces would be engaged in combat, the White House announced in October that it would deploy ground troops in Syria to help the rebels fight the IS militants.

The lack of close and effective coordination against terrorism within the international community has a lot to do with the widening fissures between some major powers. As two leaders in the war against the IS, the US and Russia still have major differences over the Syrian crisis, which the religious extremists are exploiting not only to survive but also to expand.