Nato’s Secretary General has indicated that the alliance will expand its presence in Iraq to counter security threats following a meeting with the country’s prime minister.
Jens Stoltenberg held a lengthy meeting with Mustafa Al Kadhimi at the Brussels headquarters in which he reassured the Iraq leader that he could rely on the alliance later tweeting it would be "stepping up our support".
Nato has already committed to an eightfold increase in its troop numbers to total 4,000 and it is understood that this could be expanded to counter the ISIS threat.
With upcoming elections, continuing concerns over Iran-backed militia and potentially resurgent terrorists, Mr Al Kadhimi asked for reassurances of Nato backing.
“Iraq can count on the support of Nato and its countries for your government and the approach it is working on,” Mr Stoltenberg is reported to have said.
Nato would also be ready to “expand co-operation between Iraq and the alliance,” but that the role for the foreign troops would be a “non-combat mission of a purely training and advisory nature”. Iraqi forces would still be required to provide security and take the fight to ISIS and Iran-backed militias.
Mr Stoltenberg added that any expansion of Nato’s framework in Iraq would also be done at the “request, approval and priorities of the Iraqi government”.
The Nato leader, who also praised Iraq’s efforts to ensure that ISIS did not return, later reaffirmed a potential expansion tweeting that the alliance would be “stepping up our support to #Iraq in their fight against terrorism”.
Mr Al Kadhimi stressed the importance of developing relations with Nato to stabilise the region and make it secure for his people.
“The necessity of co-operation with Nato is in supporting the capabilities of Iraqi forces and security institutions, especially in the context of preparing to secure the upcoming elections,” he said.
The Nato troops would also reinforce Iraqi capabilities “to protect against terrorist and criminal attacks against citizens and infrastructure”, he said.
The prime minster, accompanied by both his foreign and defence ministers, added that the country should not become an arena for settling conflicts, or a springboard for aggression against any of its neighbours.
There are currently no plans for the total withdrawal of the 2,500 US troops from Iraq with the military chiefs insisting that the threat from ISIS and Iran meant they would stay in place.
Earlier this year the US commander General Frank McKenzie stated that the Nato increase would not lead to an American decrease. “We're going to stay in Iraq” to “finish the ISIS fight,” he said.
