Jan 15 (Reuters) - Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani defended the presence of U.S. troops in his country and set no timetable for their withdrawal, in an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Sunday. Referring to the U.S. and NATO troop contingents that train and assist Iraqi units in countering Islamic State but largely stay out of combat, Sudani said that the foreign forces are still needed. "Elimination of ISIS needs some more time," he said in the interview. "I don’t see this as an impossible matter, to see Iraq have a good relationship with Iran and the U.S.," Sudani told the newspaper. Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu in Bengaluru; Editing by Susan FentonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Source: Wall Street Journal January 15, 2023 13:26 UTC