Iraq, US signed army aviation, air defense deals: Minister

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s defense ministry signed several army aviation and air defense deals during a trip to Washington this week headed by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, the defense minister told Rudaw.

Iraqi Defense Minister Thabet al-Abbassi told Rudaw’s Mushtaq Ramadhan on the sidelines of the Sulaimani Forum on Wednesday that Baghdad and Washington “had ready-made contracts in the field of army aviation and air defenses." ‎
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‎"Representatives of the defense ministry [in Washington] signed these contracts with the American side," he said.

Sudani embarked on a week-long trip to the United States on April 13. He was received by US President Joe Biden in the Oval Office on Monday.

He also met with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in the Pentagon where Sudani expressed “Iraq's interest in acquiring expertise, arms, and experience, emphasizing the importance of security partnership, especially given the current regional conditions that require stability and prevention of escalation,” according to a statement from his office.

Yehia Rasool, spokesperson for Sudani, told Rudaw that the Iraqi delegation signed a nearly half a billion dollar deal to equip the Iraqi armed forces.

Rasool described Sudani’s trip as a “turning point in relations with the United States, within the Strategic Framework Agreement.”

During his visit Sudani also met with American weapons and military equipment manufacturer General Dynamic, discussing “cooperation with the company as part of the government's efforts to rebuild Iraq's military capabilities, specifically in providing tanks and armored vehicles.”