The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is dismissing reports that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi wants Russia to conduct air strikes in his country against terror groups.
Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford told reporters traveling with him to Iraq on Tuesday that Iraqi leaders told the U.S. that no Russian strikes have been requested, according to The Associated Press.
Dunford landed in Iraq on Tuesday as part of his first trip abroad since taking over as Joint Chiefs chairman at the beginning of the month.
{mosads}After Russia began airstrikes in Syria, Abadi said in a television interview that he would “welcome” Russian airstrikes against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
Dunford also said he wants updates on battles in Beiji and Ramadi during his Iraq visit. Last week, Iraqi forces and Shiite militia fighters drove ISIS out of the Beiji oil refinery.
Ramadi is still under the control of ISIS, though a U.S. official said last week he believes Iraqi forces are in a good position to launch an assault to take back the city.
Dunford also met with the head of Iraq’s Kurdish regional government, President Massoud Barzani.
“I am new in my job, and one of the first things I wanted to do was come over here and see you,” Dunford told Barzani, according to the AP. “As you know, we have a common enemy.”
On his way to Iraq, Dunford also stopped in Jordan and Israel, where defense aid talks resumed for the first time since the Iran nuclear deal was finalized.