Kerry lauds Iraq's appointment of defense, interior ministers

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Saturday hailed Iraqi lawmakers' approving Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's nominees for the posts of defense and interior ministers as "a very positive step forward" in fighting the militant Islamic State (IS).

"We are very pleased and congratulate Prime Minister al-Abadi, and we look forward to working with them as we continue to grow cooperation and move forward," Kerry told reporters before meeting with visiting Chinese State Councillor Yang Jiechi, who is preparing for the upcoming visit to China by U.S, President Barack Obama in November.

Iraqi lawmakers on Saturday approved Mohammad Salem al-Ghabban, a Shiite lawmaker, as Iraq's new interior minister, and Khaled al- Obeidi, a Sunni lawmaker from Mosul, as new defense minister.

Kerry said that the filling of these "critical positions" will assist the organized efforts to fight the IS.

The U.S. has been pushing Iraq to fill the two powerful security ministries by overcoming differences among Iraq's feuding political factions. Washington also calls for a more representative Iraqi government to reach out to the Sunnis, who feel marginalized by former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, so to contain the advances by the IS, an extremist militant movement largely fueled by the Sunni discontent. Enditem