WASHINGTON — Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki arrived at the White House Friday to personally appeal to President Barack Obama for more U.S. assistance in beating back the bloody insurgency consuming his country.
The White House hasn’t indicated whether it will grant al-Maliki’s request for additional weapons, help with intelligence and other assistance. The United States already provides military aid to Iraq, the legacy of an unpopular war that already cost Americans nearly 4,500 troops and more than $700 billion. It’s unclear what more Obama will be willing to give.
Al-Maliki argues U.S. assistance is vital to help push back the bloodshed that has spiked across his country since U.S. troops left at the end of 2011. The withdrawal came after al-Maliki’s government refused to let U.S. forces remain in Iraq with legal immunity that the Obama administration insisted was necessary to protect troops.
Obama had campaigned on ending the nearly nine-year war in Iraq and took the opportunity offered by the legal dispute to pull all troops out.
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