French President 'deeply' regrets US decision to withdraw troops from Syria

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that he "deeply" regretted the United States decision to withdraw forces from Syria.

"As for the question concerning our US allies, I deeply regret the [US] decision on Syria," Macron said at the joint press conference with his Chadian counterpart Idriss Deby.

The president stressed that being allies meant to "fight shoulder to shoulder."

"An ally must be reliable and act in coordination with other allies," he added.

On Wednesday, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said that the United States began the pullout of its forces from Syria. She noted that the troops' withdrawal did not mean the end of the US-led international coalition's fight against the Islamic State (IS, banned in Russia) terrorist group. The statement followed President Donald Trump's remark about the IS defeat in Syria.