Victory over the terrorist group 'Islamic State' in Syria and Iraq will not mean the complete defeat of the ideology of Islamic extremism.
This statement was made by British foreign secretary Philip Hammond in an interview with the Sydney Morning Herald.
"We shouldn't delude ourselves that even if we drive them out of Iraq and even defeat them in Syria that some other manifestation of this ideology isn't going to emerge," the head of British diplomacy said.
Hammond said that the struggle with Islamic State will last a generation. At the same time, according to the minister, the military element was not the hardest part. "Perhaps the more important challenge is strategic communication – challenging their ideology, challenging their narrative, challenging the motivation of people who go and actively support them," he believes.
Asked whether the West was making progress on this, Hammond said: "We recognise that while we are making some headway we are not yet achieving the momentum we need to get on top of this". "You can't take on an ideology and change the world's view of it, the appeal it has to vulnerable people. That's something that takes time," TASS cited the head of the British foreign ministry.
