UPDATE – Iraq’s prime minister visits Syria, holds talks with Assad

UPDATES WITH DETAILS, REVISES HEADLINE, EDITS THROUGH

By Ibrahim Sipahi

ISTANBUL (AA) – Iraqi Prime Minister Mohamed Shia al-Sudani held talks on Sunday with head of the Syrian regime Bashar al-Assad in the capital Damascus.

Al-Sudani arrived in Damascus earlier Sunday for the first official visit to the Syrian capital by an Iraqi premier in 13 years.

Talks between the two sides took up aspects of bilateral relations and issues of mutual concern, Iraq’s state news agency INA reported.

The discussions also covered joint security coordination in the field of combating terrorism, the broadcaster said.

Assad, for his part, termed al-Sudani’s visit as “an opportunity to build an institutional relationship and achieve a great leap in bilateral cooperation between the two countries,” the state news agency SANA reported.

The Iraqi premier’s visit to Syria came upon an invitation from Assad for talks on enhancing bilateral cooperation, according to Iraqi media.

Former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was the last Iraqi premier to have visited Syria in 2010.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar and Ikram Kouachi