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US: New government is 'milestone' for Iraq US: New government is 'milestone' for Iraq
(35 minutes later)
The US has hailed the announcement of a new government in Iraq ahead of a drive to organise an international coalition against Islamic State (IS). The US has hailed the creation of a new government in Iraq as a major milestone and a crucial step towards defeating the militant group, Islamic State (IS).
Secretary of State John Kerry said the US would stand with Iraqis in the fight against the group, which has seized large parts of the country. Secretary of State John Kerry said Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's cabinet had the "potential to unite all of Iraq's diverse communities".
Mr Kerry is visiting Jordan and Saudi Arabia on Tuesday for talks. Posts have been shared between the Shia Arab majority, Sunni Arabs and Kurds.
Iraq's parliament approved the new government, which includes Sunni Arabs and Kurds, on Monday. Mr Kerry is travelling to Saudi Arabia and Jordan this week as part of efforts to build a coalition to confront IS.
Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, a moderate Shia Arab, was asked to form a government in August after the resignation of Nouri Maliki. The jihadist group has taken control of large swathes of Iraq and Syria and in June declared the creation of a "caliphate", or Islamic state.
He chose Saleh al-Mutlak, a Sunni, and Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd, as his deputy prime ministers, and vowed to fill the interior and defence minister positions within a week. 'Legitimate grievances'
The US has repeatedly called for Iraq's central government to do more to deal with the grievances of the Sunni minority to persuade it to join the fight against IS. Among the first to telephone Mr Abadi to congratulate him was US President Barack Obama, who hopes the new government can start pulling Iraq back together.
'Enduring coalition' The two leaders "agreed on the importance of having the new government quickly take concrete steps to address the aspirations and legitimate grievances of the Iraqi people", a White House statement said.
President Barack Obama congratulated Mr Abadi by telephone on Monday. The US had made the approval of a unity government a condition for increased military assistance.
In a statement, he said that Mr Abadi had expressed his commitment to work with "all communities in Iraq as well as regional and international partners" to strengthen Iraq's efforts against IS. Mr Abadi, a Shia Islamist, named three deputies - Hoshyar Zebari, the Kurdish outgoing foreign minister, Saleh al-Mutlak, a secular Sunni who held the same post in the last government, and Baha Arraji, a Shia Islamist and former MP.
Mr Obama is expected to announce a strategy to combat the group on Wednesday. Adel Abdul Mahdi, a Shia former vice-president, was appointed oil minister and former PM Ibrahim Jaafari, also Shia, will be foreign minister. No defence or interior minister was named but Mr Abadi promised to do so within a week.
He has repeatedly ruled out the possibility of a US ground operation, but has sanctioned air strikes against the group in Iraq. He vowed to "allow all people in Iraq to participate in liberating the cities and provinces which have been taken over by terrorist groups... and to bring back security and stability".
Earlier this year, Islamic State announced the creation of a "caliphate" in the large swathes of Iraq and Syria under its control. The BBC's Jim Muir in Irbil says the hope is that by including Sunnis, the new administration can win the support of the Sunni population in areas controlled by IS and turn them against the radicals.
It has threatened many of Iraq's minorities and claimed to have beheaded several foreign captives. Many Sunnis were alienated by the outgoing Shia-dominated government of Nouri Maliki and rebelled against it.
Mr Kerry is due to travel to the region to build what he called "the broadest possible coalition of partners around the globe to confront, degrade and ultimately defeat [IS]". Analysis: Jim Muir, BBC News, Irbil
He said the coalition would be "built to endure for the months, and perhaps years, to come". The Americans are hoping the new government can start pulling Iraq back together, and provide a springboard for a national drive to root out Islamic State militants. That can only work if the Sunni community can be persuaded that that is in their interests.
The secretary general of the Arab League meanwhile urged its members to confront Islamic State on all possible levels. Mr Obama and Mr Abadi agreed on the need for the new government to address the aspirations and legitimate grievances of the Iraqi people - a clear reference to the Sunnis. Their demands include the release of detainees, an end to bombardment of Sunni areas, and a real share of power in Baghdad.
What was required from member states was a "clear and firm decision for a comprehensive confrontation" with "cancerous and terrorist" groups, Nabil al-Arabi told a meeting of foreign ministers in Cairo. The task ahead is clearly massive. Among other things, the Iraqi army is in a state of disarray, and much of the recent fighting has been done by Shia militia, strengthening the element of sectarian civil strife that will have to be eliminated if the IS radicals are to be isolated and crushed, without whole communities being destroyed.
Are you in Iraq? Email your stories from the region to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk adding your contact details. 'Coalition'
Later, Mr Kerry told reporters in Washington: "Iraq's leaders must now govern with the same sense of purpose that helped them bring this government together."
"The defeat of [IS] will be a long-term challenge but Iraq will have the support of the United States and its other friends and allies, as it rises above its differences, strengthens its democratic institutions, meets the needs of its vulnerable citizens, combats terrorism, and unites in its resolve against [IS]," he added.
The state department said Mr Kerry would travel to the Middle East on Tuesday to consult key partners on how to further support the Iraqi government, combat the threat posed by IS, and confront regional security challenges.
He was expected to hold talks with the foreign ministers of Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and six Gulf Arab states in the Saudi city of Jeddah on Wednesday and Thursday, Arab officials said.
Mr Obama will also unveil his strategy to combat IS on Wednesday.
He has ruled out the possibility of a US ground operation but sanctioned dozens of air strikes against the group in Iraq and reconnaissance flights over Syria.
"Over the course of months, we are going to be able to not just blunt the momentum of [IS]," he said on Sunday. "We are going to systematically degrade their capabilities; we're going to shrink the territory that they control; and, ultimately, we're going to defeat them."
Are you in Iraq? What is your reaction to the formation of the new government? Email your stories from the region to haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
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