US Vice President Pence suddenly arrived in Iraq

US Vice President Mike Pence arrived in Iraq . His trip was not announced in advance.

According to agencies, Pence flew to the air base in the province of Anbar in the west of Iraq, where American troops are stationed.

Reuters, citing sources, argues that the main purpose of the Pence’s visit is to raise the morale of the American military and their allies to combat jihadists, Syrian Kurds.

The vice president talked on the phone with the Prime Minister of Iraq. It is still unclear whether he will meet with any of the country's leadership.

In the country for the second month, mass protests have been continuing, on Saturday in clashes in Baghdad, a demonstration died. Protests are not related to the presence of the American military in the country.

• Some of the American troops have recently been transferred from Syria to Iraq. The Americans withdrew their troops from a number of districts in the north of Syria, which occupied Turkish and Russian military. This decision of the Trump administration caused criticism in Congress and from the Syrian Kurds.
• The United States, however, retained the military presence in Syria. On Saturday, the head of the Central Command of the US Armed Forces, General Kenneth Mackenzie, said that about 500 US military in the near future will resume operations against the Islamic State terrorist group. It is not reported whether the visit of the Pence to Iraq is related to the preparation of these operations.