U.S. sharing intelligence with France, no more troops for fighting IS: Obama

U.S. President Barack Obama said here on Monday that Washington is sharing intelligence and information faster with France in the aftermath of Paris terror attacks, but he refused to commit more U.S. troops to fight the Islamic State (IS) group.

"We're streamlining the process by which we share intelligence and operational military information with France," Obama said at a press conference at the conclusion of the G20 summit.

"This will allow our personnel to pass threat information, including on the IS, to our French partners even more quickly and more often, because we need to be doing everything we can to protect against more attacks and protect our citizens," he added.

Counter-terrorism was among the top agendas at the G20 summit following the Paris attacks on Friday night, which killed at least 129 people.

France on Sunday intensified airstrikes on IS targets inside Syria in retaliation, as the extremist group had claimed responsibility for the Paris attacks.

Reaffirming U.S. goal of "degrading and ultimately destroying" the IS, Obama dismissed the idea of sending more U.S. troops to combat the group, arguing that the option cannot be "sustained."

He defended the current U.S. strategy, which focuses on eliminating IS targets, leadership and infrastructure and squeezing its space as one that "ultimately is going to work" but "is going to take time."

Obama authorized late last month the U.S. military to send some 50 commandos to Syria to act as military advisors and trainers for moderate opposition forces. It's the first time that Washington has dispatched military personnel to the Arab country after it was plunged into chaos in March 2011.

Days earlier, the Pentagon unveiled a new military strategy that calls for intensified raids on the IS in both Syria and Iraq involving the U.S. military.

Some 3,500 American troops have been sent to Iraq to serve as military advisors and trainers. Endit