Referring to the US and NATO troop contingents that train and assist Iraqi units in countering ISIS but largely stay out of combat, he told the newspaper in the interview that the foreign forces are still needed. “Elimination of ISIS needs some more time,” he said.

Al-Sudani, who took office last October, told the Wall Street Journal that he planned to send a high-level delegation to Washington for talks with US officials next month, adding that Iraq would like similar relations with Washington to those enjoyed by Saudi Arabia and other Arabian Gulf oil and gas producers.

“I don’t see this as an impossible matter, to see Iraq have a good relationship with Iran and the US,” al-Sudani told the newspaper.