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BAGHDAD, March 15 (Xinhua) -- Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit on Wednesday arrived in the Iraqi capital Baghdad on official visit for talks with Iraqi top officials ahead of the 28th Arab Summit, to be held in Amman on March 29.
Aboul-Gheit was received by the Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, and the two officials discussed the development in the Arab arena and the agenda of the upcoming Arab summit, as well as the battles against Islamic State (IS) extremist group in Mosul.
"Iraq is very keen on its presence at the Arab League in a way that gives a new strength to the league," Jaafari said at a joint news conference after the meeting with the chief of the Arab league.
"Iraq will participate strongly in the next summit," Jaafari added.
Aboul-Gheit said "the Arab League entirely supports Iraq in its war against Daesh (IS terrorist group) which is about to be totally defeated," asserting "Arab League was not surprised by the ability of Iraqi forces to regain control of its IS-seized territories."
The Arab League chief also met with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi. The two sides discussed the situation in the Arab world, and the war against terrorism, in addition to the preparations for the Arab Summit, said a statement by Abadi's office.
Abadi asserted the need to "unify the efforts of the Arab countries to fight terrorism, and wished that the coming summit will create a consensus in order to consolidate the joint Arab action," according to the statement.
Aboul-Gheit also met with Iraqi President Fuad Masoum, who expressed Iraq's "interest in boosting informational cooperation so as to ensure the elimination of terrorist groups and the reasons behind their existence," according to a statement by Masoum office.
Masoum also reiterated Iraq's rhetoric in finding "peaceful solutions to the armed conflicts, particularly in Libya, Yemen, Syria," it added.
Aboul-Gheit's visit to Iraq came as the Arab summit is scheduled to address tough security issues in the Arab region, including the fight against IS group as well as the crises in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen.
His visit also came as the Iraqi security force backed by anti-IS international coalition are carrying out a major offensive to drive out the IS militants from its last major stronghold in and around Mosul.
