US Ambassador to Iraq, Military Chief Meet With Iraqi PM in Baghdad

Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Joseph Dunford arrived in Iraq where he held a meeting with US Ambassador to Iraq Stuart Jones and Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Al-Abadi, the US Joint Staff said in a Twitter message.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, the United States approved the sale of $800 million worth of Hellfire missiles and Captive Air Training Missiles to Iraq. The sale announcement came as the United States has vowed to help Iraqi forces fight the Daesh militant group within its borders, as the terrorist organization has claimed swaths of territory in the region.

"Amb. Stuart Jones & Gen. Dunford meet with PM @HaiderAlAbadi at the Republican Palace in Baghdad, Jan. 7," the message said on Thursday.

US President Barack Obama had a phone conversation with Abadi on Thursday and congratulated the prime minister with Iraq’s progress in fighting the terrorists.

Iraqi security forces have recently advanced to the center of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, after the city fell to IS insurgents in May, in Baghdad’s largest defeat against the extremist group.