Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made an unannounced trip to Iraq on Tuesday, nearly 20 years after a US-led invasion of the region toppled Saddam Hussein.
A senior defense official said the trip was to show the US’s determination to maintain its military presence in the country.
“What (Iraqis) will hear from him is the commitment to maintaining our troop presence, but it’s not just about the military tool. The United States is generally interested in a strategic partnership with the government of Iraq,” the official told reporters.
Austin is the highest-ranking official in the Biden administration to visit Iraq. He was the last commanding general of the United States armed forces in the country after the invasion.
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Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made an unannounced trip to Iraq on Tuesday, nearly 20 years after a US-led invasion. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
“I am here to reaffirm the strategic partnership between the US and Iraq as we move toward a more secure, stable and sovereign Iraq,” Austin said Tuesday.
The US has 2,500 troops in Iraq and another 900 in Syria to support local troops fighting Islamic State militants who seized large swaths of territory in both countries in 2014.
The trip was also made in support of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani’s efforts against Iranian influence in the country.
A senior defense official said Austin’s trip was to show the US’s commitment to maintaining its military presence in Iraq. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)
Iran-backed militias in Iraq have historically targeted US troops and their embassy in Baghdad with missiles.
The US and Iran were approaching full-scale conflict in 2020 after the US killed the top commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Qassem Soleimani, in a drone strike.
“I think Iraqi leaders share our interest that Iraq does not become a playground for conflict between the United States and Iran,” the defense official said.
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Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was the last commanding general of U.S. forces in post-invasion Iraq. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
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Austin will meet with the Sudani and Iraqi Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani amid a long-running dispute over budget transfers and oil revenue sharing between the national government and the Kurdish government.
Reuters contributed to this report