Page 2 - ARUBA TODAY

A2 UP FRONT
Monday 23 october 2017
Tillerson seeks Arab help in US effort to isolate Iran

Continued from Front At the council meeting,
Tillerson praised the Saudi
“Those fighters need to go king and Abadi for the Au-
home,” Tillerson said. “Any gust reopening of a ma-
foreign fighters need to go jor border crossing and
home.” the resumption of direct
In Riyadh for the inaugu- flights between Riyadh and
ral meeting of the Saudi Baghdad last week.
Arabia-Iraq Coordination “Both represent the begin-
Council — a vehicle that ning of what we hope will
U.S. officials believe can be a series of even more
wean Iraq from Iran — Tiller- tangible actions to improve
son told Saudi King Salman relations and strengthen
and Iraqi Prime Minister cooperation on a host of is-
Haider al-Abadi that the sues,” he said. “Your grow-
nascent partnership be- ing relationship between
tween their countries held the kingdom and Iraq is vi-
great promise for Iraq’s tal to bolstering our collec-
reconstruction after dev- tive security and prosperity
astating battles to wrest and we take great interest
territory from the Islamic in it.”
State group and its inde- His participation in the
pendence from foreign meeting comes as U.S. of-
influence. “We believe this ficials step up encourage-
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Saudi King Salman speak before their meeting, Sunday, Oct. will in some ways counter ment of a new axis that
22, 2017, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon, Pool) some of the unproductive unites Saudi Arabia and
influences of Iran inside of Iraq as a bulwark against
Iraq,” he said at a news Iran’s growing influence
conference with Saudi For- from the Persian Gulf to the
eign Minister Adel al-Jubeir Mediterranean Sea. Amid
after the council meeting. the push for that alliance,
Tillerson said countries out- the Iraqi government is
side of the region could struggling to rebuild recent-
also play a role, primarily by ly liberated Islamic State
shunning the Revolutionary strongholds and confronts
Guards, which play a ma- a newly assertive Kurdish in-
jor role in Iran’s economy dependence movement.
and were added to a U.S. History, religion and lots of
terrorism blacklist earlier this politics stand in Tillerson’s
month. Companies and way, but both the Saudi
countries that do business king and the Iraqi prime
with the guards “really do minister appeared optimis-
so at great risk,” he said. tic about the prospects.
“We are hoping that Euro- “We are facing in our re-
pean companies, coun- gion serious challenges in
tries and others around the the form of extremism, ter-
world will join the U.S. as we rorism as well as attempts
put in place a sanctions to destabilize our coun-
structure to prohibit activi- tries,” Salman said. “These
ties of the Iranian Revolu- attempts require our full
tionary Guard that foment attention. ... We reaffirm
instability in the region and our support for the unity
create destruction in the and stability of our brother
region,” Tillerson said. country of Iraq.”.q
Mattis praises Philippines

progress against militants

CLARK FREEPORT, Philip- In remarks to reporters fly-
pines (AP) — U.S. Defense ing with him from Wash-
Secretary Jim Mattis is con- ington, Mattis praised the
gratulating the Philippine Philippine military for what
government on progress he called “sending a very
against militants in the necessary message to the
southern city of Marawi. terrorists.”
Mattis arrived in the Philip- Mattis also plans to visit
pines on Monday to meet Thailand and South Korea
with senior government this week, in advance of
leaders and to attend President Donald Trump’s
a meeting of Southeast visit to the region in
Asian defense ministers. November.q