Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

British minister meets Iraqi PM Maliki in Baghdad

Reuterse
Sunday 19 October 2008 09:40 BST
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Britain's new Defence Secretary John Hutton made his first visit to Iraq on Sunday and met Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad.

Hutton, the former business secretary, took over the defence portfolio in Prime Minister Gordon Brown's cabinet reshuffle on 3 October. Britain has about 4,000 troops in Iraq, mainly at an air base outside the southern city of Basra.

Britain, like the United States, is negotiating a bilateral agreement with Baghdad to allow its troops to stay on after a UN Security Council mandate expires at the end of the year.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in