Trump, Iraqi leader discuss IS, US troops and Iran

President Donald Trump and the prime minister of Iraq met Thursday to discuss ways to confront Iranian aggression in the region, threats from Islamic State sleeper cells and the president's desire to shrink the US military's footprint in the country.

There are more than 5,000 American troops in Iraq now. Last month, the top US general for the Middle East said he believed the US will keep a smaller but enduring presence in the country. Marine Gen Frank McKenzie, the commander of US Central Command, said after he met with Iraq's new prime minister, Mustafa al-Kadhimi, that he believes the Iraqis welcome the US and coalition troops, especially in the ongoing fight to keep IS fighters from taking hold of the country again.

McKenzie would not say how many US troops might stay. But he said Iraqi conventional forces now operate on their own. US and coalition forces continue to conduct training and counterterrorism operations, including with Iraqi commandos. Any final decisions, he said, would be coordinated with the Iraqi government.

Al-Kadhimi, who is backed by the United States, assumed office in May when Baghdad's relations with Washington were precarious following the US killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike at the Baghdad airport.

Al-Kadhimi has often had to walk a tightrope due to the US-Iran rivalry. Asked if he was bringing any messages from Tehran following a recent visit there, al-Kadhimi told The Associated Press before he left for Washington: “We do not play the role of postman in Iraq.” The US recognises the cultural and religious ties that exist between Iran and Iraq, but the administration wants to decrease Iran's destabilizing influence, often exercised by pro-Iranian militias, on the political and security in Iraq.

Al-Kadhimi's administration inherited a myriad of crises. State coffers in the crude oil-dependent country were slashed following a severe drop in prices, adding to the woes of an economy already struggling with the aftershocks of the global coronavirus pandemic.

The US wants to make sure the Baghdad central government's limited resources also find their way to the Kurdish autonomous region in northern Iraq.

State violence used to quell the mass protests that erupted in October brought public trust in the government to a new low. Tens of thousands of Iraqis marched decrying rampant government corruption, poor services and unemployment, leading to the resignation of the previous premier, Adel Abdul-Mahdi.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who met Wednesday with Iraq's foreign minister, Fuad Hussein, said the U.S. was committed to helping Iraq regain and maintain security, despite Trump's oft-stated desire to reduce and then eliminate American troops' presence there. Armed groups are not under the full control of the Iraqi prime minister, Pompeo said. He said those groups should be replaced by local police as soon as possible and that the U.S. could and would help.

The Iraqi prime minister told Pompeo that Iraq currently does not need direct military support on the ground, and that the levels of help will depend on the changing nature of the threat. Three years since Iraq declared victory over IS, sleeper cells continue to stage attacks across the country's north.

Pompeo and the Iraqi foreign minister expressed hope that as the security situation improves, there will be greater economic cooperation between the two countries, particularly in the energy sector.

On Wednesday, Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette announced energy agreements worth up to USD 8 billion between the Iraqi minsters of oil and electricity and five US companies — Honeywell, Baker Hughes, GE, Stellar and Chevron.

Brouillette said US private investment will help Iraqi's energy sector and stressed a need for Iraq to reduce its dependence on energy from Iran.