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        Pentagon: No Plans to Consult Iran Over Possible Action in Iraq

   by Jeff Seldin

   The Pentagon is downplaying speculation about U.S. and Iranian military
   cooperation in Iraq, hours after Secretary of State John Kerry made the
   suggestion in an interview, a military spokesman said the U.S. is not
   planning to engage with Iran militarily to protect its troubled
   neighbor.
   With militant Islamic fighters claiming new cities in Iraq and
   distributing video purporting to show mass executions, U.S. Secretary
   of State John Kerry raised the possibility of working with Iran to stem
   the crisis. He told Yahoo! News he would be open to any constructive
   process.
   At the Pentagon, Rear Admiral John Kirby made clear that right now,
   there is only so far the U.S. military is prepared to go. "There are no
   plans to have consultations with Iran about military activities in
   Iraq."
   Kirby said he could not rule out talks between U.S. and Iranian
   officials about Iraq on the sidelines of nuclear talks in Vienna. And
   he did not address reports that Iran already has sent members of its
   elite Revolutionary Guard Corps into Iraq.
   "We encourage Iran, like all the neighbors in the region, to play a
   constructive role, to respect the territorial integrity and the
   sovereignty of Iraq while Iraq is going through this difficult time,"
   said Kirby.
   At the State Department, spokeswoman Jen Psaki conveyed this U.S.
   message to Iran's rulers. "There is a role to play in reducing the
   sectarian nature of how Iraq is being governed, that that's a role that
   they could play. We don't feel it's useful for the Iraqis to rely on
   the capacity of Iran's security forces," she said.
   U.S. defense officials say they are continuing to prepare a range of
   military options to present to President Barack Obama, designed to help
   the Iraqi security forces and break ISIL's momentum.
   The U.S. already has sent about 100 additional troops to help with
   security at its embassy in Baghdad. And in recent days, the Pentagon
   has ordered an aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush  and guided
   missile destroyers into the Persian Gulf.
   On Monday, officials announced the USS Mesa Verde also is heading into
   the Gulf with 550 Marines and five Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft, capable
   of evacuating personnel if needed.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/pentagon-no-plans-to-consult-iran-ove
   r-possible-action-in-iraq/1938279.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/pentagon-no-plans-to-consult-iran-over-possible-action-in-iraq/1938279.html