ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani met with United States Vice President Kamala Harris on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Friday amid tensions over US airstrikes against Iraqi armed groups blamed for the deaths of American soldiers in Jordan.
Harris “urged the Iraqi government to prevent attacks against U.S. personnel and expressed appreciation for the Prime Minister’s efforts to date. She stated that the United States has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and will act, as needed, in self-defense,” according to a statement from the White House.
Iraqi armed groups are blamed for more than 165 drone and rocket attacks against US interests in Iraq, Syria, and Jordan since the Israel-Gaza conflict began in October. The armed groups, which are aligned with Iran, are angry over Washington’s support for Israel. Three US soldiers were killed in an attack in Jordan in late January.
In retaliation, the US has carried out multiple strikes against the armed groups in locations in Syria and Iraq. The Iraqi government has strongly condemned these strikes, which it says are a violation of its sovereignty.
In his meeting with Harris, Sudani “renewed Iraq's firm position regarding sovereignty over Iraqi territory, as it is one of the principles that cannot be tolerated or neglected under various reasons and circumstances,” his office stated on X.
Upset with the US strikes, the Iraqi government has begun the process of winding down the mission of foreign troops in the country as part of the global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS). Iraqi and American officials have had two meetings of a Higher Military Commission tasked with assessing the current ISIS threat and the capabilities of Iraq’s forces.
The White House statement described the Commission’s work as enabling “the transition to an enduring bilateral security partnership between the United States and Iraq and is the natural next step to build on the very successful collaboration of the past 10 years between Iraq and the Defeat ISIS coalition.”
Harris also invited Sudani to visit the White House.
