Trump Thanks Iraqi Kurdistan Leader For 'Close Cooperation' With US - White House

US President Donald Trump met on Wednesday with the Iraqi Kurdistan leader Nechirvan Barzani and thanked him for maintaining a close partnership with the United States, the White House said in a statement

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd January, 2020) US President Donald Trump met on Wednesday with the Iraqi Kurdistan leader Nechirvan Barzani and thanked him for maintaining a close partnership with the United States, the White House said in a statement.

"President Trump thanked President Barzani for the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government's continued close partnership with the United States, as well as its ongoing support for refugees and displaced persons," the statement said. "The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to working together to defeat ISIS [Islamic State terror group, banned in Russia].

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Earlier, Trump met with Iraqi President Barham Salih, whose office said after the meeting that the two leaders discussed the issue of "the presence and reduction of foreign forces in the country." The United States presently has some 5,000 troops in Afghanistan.

Earlier in January, the Iraqi parliament voted to expel all foreign forces from the country. The move came shortly after Trump ordered a drone strike that killed top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani near Baghdad, prompting Iran to respond by firing ballistic missiles at two Iraqi bases hosting US and allied soldiers.