U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrives in Irbil, Iraq, Oct. 20, 2015. DoD photo by D. Myles Cullen
(Photo by D. Myles Cullen )
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Stuart E. Jones greets U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, upon his arrival in Irbil, Iraq, Oct. 20, 2015. DoD photo by D. Myles Cullen
(Photo by D. Myles Cullen )
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Stuart E. Jones and U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Sean McFarland greet U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, upon his arrival in Irbil, Iraq, Oct. 20, 2015. DoD photo by D. Myles Cullen (Photo by D. Myles Cullen )
U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., center left, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, meets with Kurdish President Massoud Barzani and other Kurdish officials in Irbil, Iraq, Oct. 20, 2015. DoD photo by D. Myles Cullen (Photo by D. Myles Cullen )
Kurdish President Massoud Barzani meets with U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., left, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Stuart E. Jones, not shown, in Irbil, Iraq, Oct. 20, 2015. DoD photo by D. Myles Cullen (Photo by D. Myles Cullen)
IRBIL, Iraq —
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff arrived here today from Jordan seeking the ground truth of the campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr. told reporters traveling with him that he is going to Irbil to receive a campaign update. He will meet with U.S. and Kurdish officials during the visit.
Dunford is scheduled to meet with President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani.
The chairman has been in office for two weeks, and he said this is one of the first things he wanted to do in his new position. He said he hopes to get his “eyes on the ground, talk about the capabilities of Iraqi forces.”
Discussions With U.S., Iraqi Leaders
Dunford will speak to Iraqi and U.S. leaders about ongoing operations to protect the Beiji oil complex and retake Ramadi.
The general said he also wants “to get a sense for where we are in training." He added, “Clearly, I want to get a sense of where [Army Lt. Gen. Sean] McFarland thinks we need support.”
Dunford said he’ll also discuss the campaign in Iraq, as well as Syria.
“The dynamic is across Iraq and Syria, so we’re going to talk about the campaign more broadly,” he said. “From a U.S. perspective, with General McFarland, we’ll talk about how our activities in Iraq and Syria are coordinated.”
(Follow Jim Garamone on Twitter: @garamoneDoDNews)