With an aim to repair the relations which were impeded during the US invasion 20 years ago, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin paid a surprise visit to Iraq on Tuesday.
Upon his arrival in the country, the defence secretary while taking to Twitter wrote, “Wheels down in Baghdad. I’m here to reaffirm the U.S.-Iraq strategic partnership as we move toward a more secure, stable, and sovereign Iraq.”
The visit by the Pentagon chief comes just ahead of the 20th anniversary of the invasion that resulted in the killings of many Iraqi civilians.
Austin led the 3rd Infantry Division during the invasion in 2003. Later, he again returned to Baghdad in 2008 for a little over a year. Finally, Austin was deployed to Iraq once again in late 2010 as the top commander. With his experience as a combat leader, Austin oversaw the troops’ withdrawal from Iraq. He also assured a deep comittment for safety and dignity of Iraqi people along with equal economic opportunity for all of them.
The withdrawal of US troops led to a significant rise of Daesh in the country.
Austin said, “Now, our defence cooperation against Daesh is a key pillar of our bilateral relationship, and the United States remains committed to this fight in support of Iraq’s security and the security of the entire region.”
“We’ll continue to increase inter-operability among our – among our – allies and partners, and we’ll continue working to accomplish this mission together,” he added.
US presently has 2,500 troops in Iraq deployed to combat the Islamic State. Over this, the Pentagon chief said that US forces are ready to remain in Iraq at the invitation of the government of Iraq.
“Now, these forces are operating in a non-combat, advise, assist and enable role to support the Iraqi led fight against terrorism.” He said that US is focused on the mission of defeating Daesh and its presence in the region has no other purpose.
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