Iraq PM visits White House amid debate over post-Mosul strategy
With the liberation of Mosul in sight, the Trump administration is internally divided on what formula might bring long-term stability.
WASHINGTON — As Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi visits Washington and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson hosts some 68 counterparts for a counter-Islamic State (IS) summit in Washington on March 22-23, a debate has emerged within the Trump administration about how invested it plans to be after the liberation of Mosul from IS, and how hard it should push on Iran to give space so Iraq can try to reintegrate its alienated Sunni population.
At issue is how to ensure that Sunni communities and territory liberated from IS do not become fertile ground once again for Sunni extremists, as they did in 2012-2014, after the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq and after increasingly sectarian policies pursued by the Shiite-led Nouri al-Maliki government in Baghdad alienated Iraqi Sunni communities.
