U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Baghdad on a previously unannounced visit that marks his first trip to Iraq since 2014.
Kerry traveled from Bahrain to Iraq Friday for talks with officials including Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Kurdistan regional government Prime Minister Nechrivan Barzani.
“The secretary will underscore our strong support for the Iraqi government as it addresses significant security, economic and political challenges,” said State Department spokesman John Kirby.
He will also discuss the multi-national coalition’s ongoing support for Iraqi-led efforts to defeat Islamic State, said Kirby in a statement.
The trip comes as Iraqi-led forces push to re-take the northern city of Mosul, which fell to Islamic State militants in 2014.
Earlier this week, the U.S. Defense Department announced it will open an additional small military outpost.