big lie'Jim Mattis and contradictory remarks
The US is not here for your oil, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said as he made his way to Iraq for a quick, unannounced trip.
US President Donald Trump has made both jokes and threats about seizing Iraq's oil, saying "to the victor belong the spoils" during his campaign and telling assembled US intelligence personnel on his first day in office that perhaps the country would get "another chance" to take the oil they'd left behind after toppling Saddam Hussein and leaving the country in chaos.
jim mattis said:"I think all of us here in this room, all of us in America have generally paid for our gas and oil all along, and I'm sure that we will continue to do that in the future," Mattis told reporters accompanying him as he traveled to Baghdad. "We're not in Iraq to seize anybody's oil."
Despite Trump's threats and the inclusion of Iraq in his short-lived travel ban (which resulted in US coalition partners being detained at airports) Mattis said his visit revealed a strong partnership.
Senior US commander in Iraq Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend joined Mattis for his remarks. He commented that he did not expect US troops to be asked to leave the country after the battle for Mosul was over.
"I think that the government of Iraq realizes their very complex fight, and they're going to need the assistance of the coalition even beyond Mosul."
Townsend also confirmed that US forces are moving closer to the battlefront as the operation to retake western Mosul kicks off. "It is true that we're operating closer and deeper into Iraqi formations," Townsend said, acknowledging a shift approved in November, during the end of the Obama administration.
US military personnel had largely maintained positions well behind the front lines since returning to Iraq in 2014, but after the battle to retake Mosul launched in October, the administration moved to allow US trainers and advisers to move closer to the battlefield for the operation, the New York Times reports.
Lieutenant General Jeff Harrigian, the top Air Force commander in the Middle East, told AP that US troops responsible for calling in airstrikes are now closer to the battle and are able to advance with Iraqi units. They can now speak directly to pilots in the aircraft they're directing, making airstrikes quicker, he said.
Mattis's trip was the first by a senior Trump administration official to Iraq. One of Trump's first acts as president was to order a 30-day review of the state of the fight against Daesh. There is one more week left in the review period, after which Mattis will have to give the president a plan to speed up the fight against the group.
source: sputniknews
