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MARGARET WARNER (NewsHour): Talabani’s visit comes as Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, Iraqi government forces and Shiite militias battle to roll back Islamic State gains.
The militants moved into Northern and Western Iraq in June, sending Iraqi troops fleeing. In August, U.S. warplanes joined the fray, targeting Islamic State units. Yesterday, on a visit by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Iraq’s new prime minister, Haider al-Abadi, asked for more U.S. airpower and weapons.
But Hagel warned that U.S. firepower is not the solution.
CHUCK HAGEL, Secretary of Defense: As Iraqi leaders and the people of Iraq know, only they can bring lasting peace to their country.
MARGARET WARNER: Baghdad did take a step to reconcile with the alienated Kurds last week with a deal to share the country’s oil revenues between them.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is deploying 3,000 trainers and advisers to Iraqi forces and may join them in the field if and when they try to recapture the large northern city of Mosul.
I spoke today with Deputy Prime Minister Talabani in Washington, where he’s urging U.S. leaders to remain engaged in Iraq.
Deputy Prime Minister Talabani, thank you for joining us.
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