Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi had told the visiting US defense chief that his country will accept no foreign military bases on its soil, just as it will not take dictates from outsiders.
In a meeting with Acting US Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan in Baghdad on Tuesday, Abdul-Mahdi said that Iraq-US relations must be based on the “basic agreements” existing between the two sides, which merely deal with fighting terrorism and training Iraqi forces, and “nothing else,” the Iraqi News reported.
Abdul-Mahdi also hailed Iraq’s achievements in restoring stability after defeating the Daesh terrorist group, and urged international support for the ongoing reconstruction process.