Kerry backs Iraqi leader, no planned increase in troops

Published 9:53 am Friday, April 8, 2016

BAGHDAD — U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry backed Iraq’s prime minister on Friday in his efforts to resolve a mounting political crisis, underlining the importance of securing a “unified and functioning government” in the fight against the Islamic State. Kerry also pledged $155 million in new U.S. aid to Iraq.

Making an unannounced visit to Baghdad, his first in two years, Kerry held discussions with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi as well as Iraq’s foreign minister, the Sunni speaker of parliament and a Kurdish regional leader in what was designed as a show of support for the Iraqi government as it struggles with ongoing security, economic and political challenges. He described al-Abadi’s effort to reshuffle his cabinet as an internal matter, but said all sides in Iraq must put sectarian or personal interests aside for the sake of the nation’s future.

“It is important to have stability,” Kerry told reporters. “And it is important to have a unified and functioning government as soon as possible, so that these operations are not affected.”

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