DOHA, Feb 25: Iraq has proposed to the United States to agree on a new security pact that will include intelligence cooperation, Iraqi Defense Minister Thabit Al-Abbasi said on Tuesday.
“We have proposed a new security agreement to the United States, and we think it is still under consideration,” the minister told Saudi TV channel Al-Hadath.
He explained that a new security agreement would provide for a “sustainable security partnership and cooperation in intelligence.”
Iraq expects US troops to withdraw from its soil this fall, ending more than a decade of US military presence in the country. The US sent troops to Iraq in 2014 as part of an international coalition against the Islamic State terror group (banned in Russia). Baghdad is preparing to sign new security agreements with coalition partners.
Commenting on the US military presence in Syria, Al-Abbasi said that Iraq wanted the US to keep boots on the ground until Syria builds an army or an agreement is reached with the Kurdish-led rebel Syrian Democratic Forces, which control northeastern Syria with US’s help. (UNI)
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