Putin, champion of the Shias
At checkpoints across the country, Iraq’s many and various security forces cheer Russia’s arrival as an answer to their failure to turn the tide after 16 months battling the jihadists of Islamic State (IS) in north-western Iraq. “The US and its coalition did nothing,” says a policeman, back from a month on the front. “Finally […]At checkpoints across the country, Iraq’s many and various security forces cheer Russia’s arrival as an answer to their failure to turn the tide after 16 months battling the jihadists of Islamic State (IS) in north-western Iraq. “The US and its coalition did nothing,” says a policeman, back from a month on the front. “Finally we’ll have a real coalition with the clout to contend with IS.”
Late last month, Iraq signed an intelligence-sharing agreement with Russia which infuriated the Americans. Days later Russia’s generals established an operations room with America’s two regional foes, Iran and Syria, inside Baghdad’s Green Zone, which houses America’s embassy. Then Russia fired missiles from the Caspian Sea through Iraqi airspace en route to Syria. Haider al-Abadi, the Iraqi prime minister (pictured, left, with Vladimir Putin), has appealed to Russia to expand its air campaign from Syria to include IS targets in Iraq. His forces also proudly show off their Russian tanks. Some officials even talk of giving the Russians an airbase. “We want a full-blown military alliance,” says a senior security official.
