Iraqi leader: Trump vows accelerated support
however, that military force is not necessarily the most effective tool. “There are better ways for defeating terrorism.”
Asked whether he had seen specific Trump administration improvements to the previous administration’s approach, al-Abadi said: “To be honest, I haven’t seen a full plan. I know there is a plan. I haven’t seen it. We have our own plan.”
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis recently presented Trump with the outlines of a comprehensive approach to defeating IS and other extremist groups on a global scale, but specifics are yet to be worked out. Officials have indicated that the approach is unlikely to depart radically from the Obama strategy, at least with regard to the ongoing efforts in Iraq and Syria.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — A senior Palestinian official expressed newfound optimism in the Trump administration Monday, saying he was encouraged by early signs that the new U.S. president was strongly committed to the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Jibril Rajoub told foreign reporters that President Donald Trump made clear to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a recent phone call that he was his “strategic partner” in making a “real and serious” peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
After initially shunning the Palestinian leader following his surprise election, Trump called Abbas 10 days ago to invite him for a meeting at the White House. His Middle East envoy then met with Abbas in his first visit to the region.
Al-Abadi appeared at the U.S. Institute of Peace, a federally funded think tank. The prime minister spoke optimistically of completing the recapture of Iraqi lands still held by IS.
He said government forces, working effectively with Kurdish forces known as Peshmerga and supported by American airpower and military advisers, are on the brink of fully liberating Mosul, the northern city that has been the Islamic State group’s main Iraqi stronghold since 2014.