CIA director says concerned about Iran’s threatening behavior in Iraq
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaks with the press as he flies to the Middle East on January 7, 2019. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via REUTERS
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Mike Pompeo has expressed his concern over Iran’s threatening behavior in Iraq.
Speaking during a panel at the annual Reagan National Defense Forum in Southern California, U.S., Pompeo said he sent a letter to Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani and Iranian leaders, warning them of launching any attack on American troops stationed in Iraq.
Pompeo said he sent the letter after the senior Iranian military commander had indicated that forces under his control might attack U.S. forces in Iraq. He did not specify the date.
“What we were communicating to him in that letter was that we will hold he and Iran accountable for any attacks on American interests in Iraq by forces that are under their control,” Reuters quoted Pompeo as telling the panel.
“We wanted to make sure he and the leadership in Iran understood that in a way that was crystal clear.”
“You need to only look to the past few weeks and the efforts of the Iranians to exert influence now in Northern Iraq in addition to other places in Iraq to see that Iranian efforts to be the hegemonic power throughout the Middle East continues to increase,” Pompeo said.
“We’ve seen them work with the Israelis to push back against terrorism throughout the Middle East, to the extent we can continue to develop those relationships and work alongside them – the Gulf states and broader Middle East will likely be more secure,” said Pompeo.