Washington seeks Baghdad’s cooperation to stop attacks against US forces
US soldiers in Iraq. Photo: Reuters
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – US Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland announced on Wednesday, during a visit to Baghdad, that the United States wants to cooperate with Baghdad to stop the assaults on US personnel stationed in Iraq and Syria.
US forces and the international coalition forces to combat ISIS have been subjected to dozens of attacks since mid-October, a reflection of the regional tension that was fueled by the war in Gaza.
Nuland told reporters in Baghdad that these attacks do not only target the United States, according to Al-Arabiya News.
“We are invited here, and we do not have our own facilities. They are attacks against Iraqi facilities and represent a threat to Iraqi sovereignty,” Nuland added.
Nuland’s statements took place following her meeting with the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani.
The US official elaborated that her discussions with the Iraqi Prime Minister tackled strategies to strengthen bilateral cooperation to put an end to these attacks, not only those in Iraq but also those coming from Iraq on interests in Syria, and how this can be done jointly.
“We, the Prime Minister, and the Iraqi government would much rather see the country’s security forces prepared to handle this security danger,” Nuland stated.
In response to these attacks, Washington launched several strikes in Iraq against militants, as well as in Syria.
102 attacks in Iraq and Syria have occurred since October 17, ten days after the war between Israel and Hamas broke out, according to a US military official.
On December 8, the US embassy in Baghdad was attacked with several missiles that did not cause casualties.
The Iraqi government announced the arrest of some of those involved in the attack on the US embassy and said that some of them have links with security services.
Washington deploys 2,500 soldiers in Iraq and about 900 in Syria as part of the fight against ISIS.