Washington dismisses Iraqi threats against US forces

WASHINGTON DC, United States (Kurdistan 24) – Washington dismissed threats on Tuesday from Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) to attack US forces, if they did not leave the country.

Similarly, Washington dismissed a statement from the Badr Organization calling on the US and Iraq to “coordinate to ensure a full withdrawal” of US troops, claiming that their continued presence “will be cause for internal polarization and a magnet for terrorists.”

US forces are “in Iraq at the invitation of the Iraqi Government,” State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert explained, as Kurdistan 24 asked her to respond to those statements.

“We will stay there as long as the Iraqi Government wants us there to not only continue to help maintain the peace,” she continued, “but also assist with stabilization projects” (Kuwait will host an international conference on Iraqi reconstruction, which Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will address next week.)

Asked if there was concern that political pressures could cause the Iraqi government to ask the US to leave, Nauert replied, “We have a very good relationship with the prime minister.”

However, the highly-regarded Washington think-tank, the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), published a report last week suggesting otherwise.

The ISW warned that Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi might not win the upcoming Iraqi elections, in May, and even if he does, the results may leave him so weak that he will be obliged to make substantial concessions to pro-Iranian parties.

Such pressure could well compromise Abadi’s “will and ability to pursue policies compatible with US national security interests,” the ISW warned.

Tillerson and White House National Security Council Advisor, H.R. McMaster, are scheduled to visit Turkey next week, according to Turkish sources.

Nauert declined to confirm those reports as she addressed the State Department press corps. However, she expressed substantial criticism of Ankara.

Nauert called on “the Turkish Government to end the protracted state of emergency;” release those citizens whom it has “detained arbitrarily;” and respect the rule of law.

Nauert did say that if Tillerson visited Turkey, he would raise those issues, “as we do on every occasion like that.”

“Things are at a tough point with Turkey right now,” a senior State Department official further explained. “The Secretary has had a series of conversations” with the Foreign Minister “to express our concerns.”

Syria’s use of chemical weapons remains a major issue, and the US continues to work on developing a mechanism to end it in the face of Russian obstructionism, Nauert also stated.

In addition to US-led efforts at the UN Security Council, France took the initiative last month in launching the “International Partnership against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons.” Nauert suggested that “additional meetings” on Syria would follow.

Early Wednesday morning, it was reported that Israel had attacked what the Syrian regime calls a “research center” north of Damascus, in the town of Jamraya.

The facility is a military complex, where the regime develops missiles, rockets, and unconventional weapons, according to Western intelligence sources.

Editing by Nadia Riva