File photo of France's flagship Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier makes it way through the Mediterranean Sea while on mission March 26, 2011. (Photo:Reuters)
President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday ordered the Russian navy in the Mediterranean to establish contact with its French counterparts and work together "as allies" in a campaign against the Islamic State group in Syria.
"It's necessary to establish direct contact with the French and work with them as allies," Putin told the military top brass at a meeting after French President Francois Hollande said the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle would be deployed to the eastern Mediterranean.
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