Iraq PM al-Sudani supports US military presence in country

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammad al-Sudani expressed support for an indefinite presence of US military troops in his country. al-Sudani defended the US military presence, saying that more time is needed in combating the Islamic State militant group.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Sunday, al-Sudani said that foreign forces are still needed in Iraq, referring to the US and NATO troop units that train and assist Iraqi forces but mainly stay out of combat. al-Sudani said that combatting Islamic State needed more time.

al-Sudani also said that he planned to send a delegation to the United States for talks with US officials in February, adding that the country would like to have similar relations with Washington like ties enjoyed by Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf oil and gas producers.

“I don’t see this as an impossible matter, to see Iraq have a good relationship with Iran and the US,” said al-Sudani.

Friday last week, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Berlin is in talks with Baghdad over the possibility of importing natural gas as Germany looks to diversify its energy sources to reduce dependence on Russian energy products. Scholz did not provide further details on the amount of gas that Germany hopes to import from Iraq.

“We also talked about possible gas deliveries to Germany and agreed to stay in close contact,” Scholz told reporters during a joint press conference with al-Sudani in Berlin.

Baghdad has offered opportunities to German companies to invest in Iraq’s natural gas and the gas generated from the byproduct of oil production, according to al-Sudani. al-Sudani added that Iraq wants to deliver gas through a pipeline from Turkey to Europe.

Early this month, a drone flying over Iraq’s Ain al-Asad air base, which hosts US military forces, was shot down by the base’s defense systems. The US-led international military coalition said in a statement that drone was conducting “an operational exercise…that involved engaging an Unmanned Aerial System” over the base as part of a training exercise.

However, Iraqi military sources said the drone may have had hostile intent as it was not clear whether it was on a surveillance mission or if it was equipped with explosives.