Daily Roundup - Prime Minister Al-Abadi meets with Congressional Leaders, State Department officials, think tank experts

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi met with Congressional leadership, State Department officials, think tank experts and members of the Iraqi community today in Washington, D.C.

Tomorrow at 10am EDT, the Prime Minister will be speaking at CSIS on the future of Iraq and answering your questions. Tweet your questions to Prime Minister Al-Abadi using #AbadiUSVisit and follow along at: http://bit.ly/1FL8Ao1.

Follow the Prime Minister’s speech and the rest of his visit via Prime Minister Al-Abadi’s (@HaiderAlAbadi), Ambassador Faily’s (@FailyLukman) and the Embassy of Iraq’s (@IraqiEmbassyUSA) coverage on Twitter.

Infographics: Learn more about the progresses of Iraq’s new government and the fight against ISIS from the Embassy of Iraq’s new infographics.

Here are today’s highlights:

The White House: Joint Statement by the United States of America and the Republic of Iraq
Office of the Press Secretary, April 14
President Obama welcomed Haider Al-Abadi, Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq, and the accompanying delegation to Washington from April 13-16, 2015. The President and the Prime Minister met today at the White House to reaffirm the long-term U.S.-Iraq strategic partnership based on mutual respect and common interests and their shared commitment to the U.S.-Iraq Strategic Framework Agreement. The President expressed his strong support for the progress that the Prime Minister and the Iraqi government have accomplished since the two leaders last met seven months ago.

Newsweek: To Defeat ISIS, Obama Needs to Reinforce Abadi
By Hardin Lang and Peter Juul, April 15
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s U.S. visit this week comes midstream in an effort to push back the Islamic State, or ISIS, just after it was handed a defeat in Tikrit, Iraq. That battle made clear that the prime minister has a Hezbollah problem on his hands: Powerful Iranian-backed Shiite militias are calling their own shots. But Tikrit uncovered the limits of the militias’ prowess and the indispensability of U.S. airpower. Abadi’s trip offers an important opportunity to ensure that the U.S.-led coalition efforts to defeat ISIS strengthen Abadi’s government and keep Iraq together rather than break it apart.

The Washington Post: For Obama and Abadi, the start of a complicated relationship
By Greg Jaffe, April 14
President Obama hailed Iraq’s prime minister on Tuesday as the kind of leader who could finally unite a fractious nation, and help America leave, after 11 years of war. “What is clear is that we will be successful,” Obama said during his first White House meeting with Haider al-Abadi. “And part of that success is Prime Minister al-Abadi’s commitment to an inclusive government.”

The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Warns Iran to Halt Unilateral Military Moves in Iraq
By Dion Nissenbaum, April 14
President Barack Obama on Tuesday warned Iran to end its unilateral military role in Iraq, part of a broader U.S. effort to weaken Tehran’s influence in the fight against Islamist extremists in the Middle East. With Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi sitting by his side in their first official Oval Office meeting, Mr. Obama said Iran had to “respect Iraqi sovereignty” by channeling any military support through Baghdad.

Miss yesterday’s roundup? Click here to see more coverage of Prime Minister Al-Abadi’s visit.