ERBIL - The US troops came to Iraq at the request of Baghdad for the purpose of improving the country's army, and not to attack any neighboring countries, said US Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Tueller on Sunday.

Tueller made the comments at a press conference on Sunday in Baghdad where he shed light on the relations between Iraq and Iran, stressing on importance of Iraq's sovereignty.

He further pointed out that the US' reason for listing Iraqi Shi'ite militia of Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba and the Lebanese Hezbollah as "terrorist groups" is for their alleged cooperation with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The US envoy, however, said that his country's forces will stay in Iraq to counter the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group as long as needed.

BasNews