Ash Carter in Baghdad over ISIS move, tension with Turkey

US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has arrived unannounced in Baghdad to discuss the latest developments in the Mosul offensive against ISIS with Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar Al-Abadi and the new tensions with Turkey. DEBKAfile’s military forces report that Carter flew over to Iraq when the situation around the Mosul operation became too complicated to manage from afar. Among these complications is the discord which has sprung up between Iraq and Turkey and disputes over the roles of Iraqi and Syrian Kurdish forces. ISIS’ surprise raid of Kirkuk has opened a second front that weighs down the main Mosul offensive.