The Pentagon said U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter arrived in Baghdad on Sunday for talks with Iraqi leaders on the U.S.-backed military campaign against Islamic State militants in Mosul . It said Carter would meet Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, the president of the Kurdish region Massoud Barzani, and the commander of the U.S.-led coalition supporting Iraqi forces, U.S. Lt. Gen. Steve Townsend. Carter said last week the battle for Mosul, while hard, could be complete before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month. That, however would require a significant acceleration in the Iraqi army’s progress.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter in Iraq for Mosul talks
