Iraq steps up anti-IS coordination with Iran, Syria, Russia

Baghdad

Iraq, Russia, Iran and Syria have agreed to set up an intelligence committee in Baghdad, the government said Sunday, a further sign of Moscow's growing role in the region's conflict.

Baghdad said the cell would help harmonise often-competing efforts in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group, although Washington objected to Syria's role.

"It's a committee coordinating between the four countries, with representatives of each country, in the field of military intelligence and aimed at sharing and analysing information," Saad al Hadithi, a spokesman for Prime Minister Haider al Abadi's office, said.

He said the cell would focus on "monitoring the movements of terrorists... and degrading their capacity".

Iraq's Joint Operations Command said the deal with Moscow comes amid "growing concern over the presence of thousands of Russian terrorists engaged in criminal acts with Daesh (IS)".

Russia's Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev earlier this month estimated that 1,800 Russian citizens are fighting for IS, while reports have suggested Moscow is deliberately letting militants take their jihad (holy war) away from its own borders.

US objection

There was no immediate comment from Damascus and Tehran, but the Baghdad-based US military spokesman for anti-IS operations took issue with Syrian President Bashar al Assad regime's participation in the new setup.

"We recognise that Iraq has an interest in sharing information on ISIL (IS) with other governments in the region who are also fighting ISIL," Colonel Steve Warren said.

"We do not support the presence of Syrian government officials who are part of a regime that has brutalised its own citizens," he added.

A Russian "military-diplomatic source" quoted by news agencies in Russia said the centre in Baghdad would be managed on a rotational basis, with Iraq taking the lead for the first three months.

"The main functions of this centre will be collection, processing and analysis of information regarding the situation in the Middle East in the context of fighting" IS, the source said.

The move comes as Moscow boosts its military presence in neighbouring Syria, deploying more troops and warplanes to an air base along with new arms deliveries to Assad's regime, a longstanding ally.

The United States has a $500-million programme to train and equip vetted moderates recruited from among the rebels fighting Assad, but it has faced repeated setbacks.