US Vice President Joe Biden makes unannounced visit to Iraq

In an unannounced visit shrouded in secrecy, US Vice President Joe Biden arrived in Iraq on Thursday, visiting the country for the first time in almost five years.

Biden’s aides have described his visit as an effort to help the Iraqi government and bolster the international military campaign against the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group.

Biden plans to meet with top Iraqi officials to discuss the military threat from ISIL terrorists, an economic crisis resulting from low oil prices and a political stalemate between the Iraqi government and parliament.

Biden last visited Iraq in November 2011, just weeks before the last American troops in Iraq were scheduled to leave.

US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Secretary of State John Kerry also made unannounced visits to Iraq this month.

The United States has added back nearly 5,000 troops in Iraq, and it is using airstrikes and providing logistical support to bolster the country’s campaign against Daesh, which still occupies large stretches of territory.

Iraq has been the scene of a political turmoil in the past weeks over Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s efforts to form a new cabinet.

On Tuesday, tens of thousands of supporters of powerful Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr took to the streets of Baghdad, urging the government to implement reforms.

Protesters waved Iraqi flags and sang songs praising al-Sadr while chanting slogans against those blocking change in the political and economic system.

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