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UK defence minister arrives in Iraq for talks

January 5, 2018 at 12:35 pm

UK defence secretary, Gavin Williamson [James N. Mattis/Flickr]

Britain’s Secretary of State for Defence arrived in Baghdad yesterday to discuss the conflict in Iraq and future British military support, Iraqi News has reported.

Gavin Williamson held a lengthy meeting with his Iraqi counterparts. “The two sides agreed to expand and develop military relations between Iraq and the UK,” revealed the Ministry Defence in London. “They discussed means of training and arming Iraq’s military and enhancing mechanisms for security and intelligence sharing.”

British armed drones have been involved in 100,000 hours of combat, which includes some operations over Iraq as part of Operation Shader against Daesh, at the invitation of the Iraqi government. Iraq declared victory over Daesh last month, but there is no sign of British involvement in the country winding down. Britain has been a member of the US-led coalition supporting Iraqi forces in their fight against Daesh since the group’s emergence in 2014.

This was Williamson’s first visit to Iraq since his appointment in November. The Conservative Party MP was criticised severely over his lack of experience for the post of Secretary of State for Defence, his first senior position in the government. This has caused concern among his fellow Members of Parliament.

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