Brussels- NATO has begun training Iraqi soldiers on how to neutralize bombs planted by ISIS jihadist group, the alliance said Sunday.
About thirty soldiers are taking part in the first five-week course on countering the deadly improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
According to Agence France Presse, alliance members had agreed to the expanded training at their summit meeting in Warsaw last July.
“The best weapon we have in the fight against terrorism is to train local forces”, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg was quoted as saying in a statement from the alliance.
“A more effective Iraqi military means a safer Iraq, and a more stable Middle East.”
Since October, NATO has also deployed its AWACS surveillance planes in the region to bolster the U.S.-led coalition fighting ISIS, a move also decided at the Warsaw summit.
The planes are one of the few concrete assets that NATO has, with most of its military hardware belonging to individual member states.
Asharq Al-Awsat
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