New Iraqi leader to visit Obama

President Obama will meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi at the White House on April 14, press secretary Josh Earnest announced on Monday. 

It will be al-Abadi’s first visit to Washington since he became prime minister in August. The visit is expected to focus on the U.S. and Iraqi efforts to fight the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). 

{mosads}“The prime minister’s visit underscores the strategic partnership between the United States and Iraq and the strong U.S. commitment to political and military cooperation with Iraq in the joint fight against ISIL,” Earnest said in a statement, using another acronym for the extremist group. “The president and prime minister will discuss a range of issues, including continued U.S. support to Iraq to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL.”

Obama has said al-Abadi is the right man to lead Iraq, but the partnership has not always been smooth. In January, al-Abadi criticized the “slowness” with which the U.S. and other Western powers provided support to the Iraq military. 

Earlier this month, the Iraqi military launched a major ground offensive to retake the city of Tikrit, which fell into ISIS’s hands last summer. The offensive, however, has reportedly stalled with Iraqi government forces sustaining heavy casualties. 

There is no U.S. involvement in the effort, but some Iraqi officials have begun to call for American air support. But getting involved would be complicated for the U.S. because Iranian-led militias are fighting side-by-side with Iraqi forces.  

The White House also announced Monday that President Obama will host Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe for an official visit and state dinner on April 28.