Iraq
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani (right) in a meeting with US Ambassador Alina Romanowski (left) in Baghdad on February 21, 2024. Photo: Sudani's office
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani met with US Ambassador Alina Romanowski on Wednesday to discuss the details of his upcoming visit to Washington and to evaluate the progress of a joint US-Iraq commission as Baghdad seeks to expel coalition troops from the country.
The meeting with Romanowski “discussed enhancing bilateral relations, emphasizing the continuation of dialogue rounds and the joint Higher Military Commission tasked with coordinating the end of the international coalition’s mission in Iraq,” said a statement from Sudani’s office.
“The files that will be raised during the upcoming meeting of the Prime Minister to Washington” were also discussed during the meeting, according to the statement.
Baghdad is currently engaged in talks with the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) to wind down the mission and end the presence of foreign troops on Iraqi soil. The talks were instigated by Iraq’s anger over repeated US retaliatory strikes targeting Iran-backed Iraqi militia groups on its territory.
On February 11, the US-Iraq Higher Military Commission (HMC) met in Baghdad to “assess the military situation, the level of danger, the operational environment, and the capabilities of the Iraqi armed forces,” Sudani’s office said at the time.
The global coalition against ISIS was formed in 2014 after the group swept through vast swathes of Iraqi and Syrian territories. ISIS was territorially defeated in both countries in 2017 and 2019 respectively but it remains a threat.
Around 2,500 American troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria are leading an international coalition through Operation Inherent Resolve that has assisted Kurdish, Iraqi, and local Syrian forces in the fight against ISIS.
The meeting with Romanowski “discussed enhancing bilateral relations, emphasizing the continuation of dialogue rounds and the joint Higher Military Commission tasked with coordinating the end of the international coalition’s mission in Iraq,” said a statement from Sudani’s office.
“The files that will be raised during the upcoming meeting of the Prime Minister to Washington” were also discussed during the meeting, according to the statement.
Baghdad is currently engaged in talks with the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) to wind down the mission and end the presence of foreign troops on Iraqi soil. The talks were instigated by Iraq’s anger over repeated US retaliatory strikes targeting Iran-backed Iraqi militia groups on its territory.
On February 11, the US-Iraq Higher Military Commission (HMC) met in Baghdad to “assess the military situation, the level of danger, the operational environment, and the capabilities of the Iraqi armed forces,” Sudani’s office said at the time.
The global coalition against ISIS was formed in 2014 after the group swept through vast swathes of Iraqi and Syrian territories. ISIS was territorially defeated in both countries in 2017 and 2019 respectively but it remains a threat.
Around 2,500 American troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria are leading an international coalition through Operation Inherent Resolve that has assisted Kurdish, Iraqi, and local Syrian forces in the fight against ISIS.
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