| CNN | - |
(CNN)
-- The United States could end up cooperating with Iran to stop
militant gains in Iraq, Secretary of State John Kerry suggested Monday
in an interview with Yahoo!
Could U.S., Iran work together in Iraq? Maybe, officials say
updated 10:05 PM EDT, Mon June 16, 2014
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STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: President Obama meets with his National Security Council
- United States, Iran held "very brief discussions," a spokeswoman says
- 275 U.S. troops headed to Iraq
- U.S. officials: Administration considering unarmed surveillance flights, airstrikes
But a Pentagon spokesman denied Monday that any military coordination with Iran is in the cards.
In his interview with
Yahoo!News, Kerry didn't say that cooperation with Iran is under active
discussion inside the administration.
"Let's see what Iran might or might not be willing to do before we start making any pronouncements," he said.
But he went on to say that the he "wouldn't rule out anything that would be constructive to providing real stability."
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"I think we are open to
any constructive process here that could minimize the violence, hold
Iraq together -- the integrity of the country -- and eliminate the
presence of outside terrorist forces that are ripping it apart," Kerry
said.
His comments are the
first time such a high-ranking U.S. official has made such a public
statement since militants from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria began
an offensive that has seen vast swaths of northern Iraq fall out of
government hands.
Two senior U.S. officials
said earlier that the Obama administration is exploring possible direct
talks with Iran over the deteriorating situation in Iraq.
Deputy Secretary of State
William Burns is in Vienna for nuclear talks with Iran and could hold
discussions on the side about Iraq with Iranian Foreign Minister
Mohammad Javad Zarif, a senior administration official said in a
background briefing with reporters Monday.
In fact, the United
States and Iran held "very brief discussions" about Iraq and the threat
posed by ISIS on the sidelines of those negotiations, State Department
spokeswoman Marie Harf told CNN's "The Situation Room with Wolf
Blitzer."
"These engagements will
not include military coordination or strategic determinations about
Iraq's future over the heads of the Iraqi people," a senior State
Department official said.
But in a signal the
administration hasn't yet reached a conclusion about what to do, two
administration officials said the United States wasn't interested in
teaming up with Iran because the two share few mutual interests.
And Pentagon spokesman
Rear Adm. John Kirby told reporters on Monday that the Defense
Department isn't working on a plan to cooperate with Iran in Iraq.
"There are no plans to
consult Iran on military actions inside Iraq," he said. "There is no
plan to coordinate military activities."
Iran is an ally of
Iraq's Shiite-led government, and a senior security official in Baghdad
told CNN on Friday that the country had sent about 500 Revolutionary
Guard troops to help fight the ISIS militants.
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Iranian President Hassan
Rouhani denied the report over the weekend, according to Iranian state
television, but said he would be open to helping if asked.
Despite their shared
interest in stopping the advance of ISIS fighters in Iraq, the United
States is wary of furthering Iran's already considerable influence
there.
The Shiite Iranian
regime is al-Malaki's closest ally in the region. And the Obama
administration is concerned that appearing to team up with Iran would
both alienate Iraq's Sunni minority and worry Sunni allies of the United States in the region.
But, as the crisis spreads, officials around the globe are scrambling for any way to slow the militant advance.
ISIS, an al Qaeda
splinter group, wants to establish a caliphate, or Islamic state, that
would stretch from Iraq into northern Syria. The group has had
substantial success in Syria battling President Bashar al-Assad's
security forces.
Here's the latest:
Iraq's military strikes back; new images emerge
After days of violent ISIS
advances, the Iraqi air force destroyed a convoy of 15 vehicles
carrying ISIS fighters headed to Baiji from Mosul, Iraqi state TV
reported Monday.
ISIS moves closer to Baghdad
Iraq under siege
Map: Unrest in Iraq
Separately, the air
force killed more than 200 militants, state TV said. Air raids against
ISIS reportedly took place in Saqlawiya, northwest of Falluja.
New images emerged Monday purporting to show a militant fighter interrogating and threatening to kill five captives.
And a video appears to
show a man in an Iraqi military uniform after he was shot in the face.
The fighter boasted on Facebook that he was proud of killing the man and
said the video should be passed around to show what could happen to
other Shiites.
The new images follow
others apparently posted by ISIS to jihadi Internet forums appearing to
show the executions of Iraqi security forces and a tweet, on what was
claimed to be an ISIS account, saying its members had killed at least
1,700 Shiites.
CNN cannot independently confirm the authenticity of the images or tweets purportedly posted by ISIS.
More militant gains
The militant group racked up several victories across Iraq on Sunday.
The northwestern city of
Tal Afar fell to ISIS, according to Iraqi Gen. Mohammed al-Quraishi.
Many Tal Afar residents, including ethnic minority Shiite Turkmen, fled
the fighting north toward Iraq's Kurdish region.
Also on Sunday, ISIS gained control of two villages in Diyala province, northeast of Baghdad.
And Iraqi security
forces and suspected ISIS gunmen clashed near al-Khalis, about 18 miles
(29 kilometers) from Diyala's capital of Baquba, al-Khalis police
officials told CNN. Three mortar rounds landed near a recruitment center
opened recently for volunteers to help the Iraqi army fight ISIS.
ISIS seized Iraq's
second-largest city, Mosul, last week and has threatened to march on
Baghdad, Iraq's capital and largest city.
Intervention debate continues
President Obama met with the National Security Council late Monday to discuss Iraq.
He has not yet made a decision regarding a military strike against ISIS militants, a senior administration official told CNN.
The President will continue to consult with his team "in the days to come," according to a White House statement.
Obama's national security team met through the weekend, discussing the pros and cons of various options.
On Monday, multiple U.S.
officials told CNN that the Obama administration is considering several
military options such as unarmed surveillance flights, increased
intelligence-gathering and airstrikes.
U.S. officials have said sending ground troops to Iraq isn't an option.
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Hollywood-type videos show ISIS killings
According to a senior
military official, another option under consideration by the Obama
administration is increasing the modest number of U.S. military advisers
and trainers stationed at the U.S. Embassy compound in Baghdad.
Expanding training programs inside and outside of Iraq could be another option, a senior administration official said.
The governor of Kirkuk,
one of the provinces that has seen heavy fighting, told CNN's Arwa Damon
that he would support U.S. airstrikes in Iraq and Syria.
"I don't think anyone is safe from these people," Gov. Najmaldin Karim said.
But a U.S. official said
last week that even airstrikes could prove futile given the lack of
credible intelligence and lack of obvious targets presented by ISIS.
U.S. Sen. John McCain,
who has called for airstrikes against ISIS, says approximately a dozen
forward air controllers would be needed on the ground to carry out such
attacks.
"You need to have people
identify the targets in order to really be effective. Remember we're
not talking about bombing in towns and cities. There are long stretches
of that desert that they have to travel across in their vehicles with
their guns on them," he told reporters Monday on Capitol Hill.
McCain also said he doesn't think Baghdad will fall to ISIS but the group could still wreak havoc in the capital.
"They can't take it.
They haven't got enough troops and support. Remember it's a Shiite city.
But what they can do is orchestrate bombings, assassinations, create
turmoil. Shelling in different places. But I'm pretty confident that
they can't take Baghdad," the senator said.
U.S. sends Marines
The United States is
sending about 275 troops to Iraq to support its embassy in Baghdad, the
White House said in a notification to Congress.
Meet the terrorists who scare al Qaeda
They will help the State
Department in connection with efforts to temporarily relocate some
embassy staffers to consulates in Basra and Erbil as well as to a
support group in Jordan. The embassy remains open and a "substantial
majority" of its presence in Iraq will remain in place, the White House
said.
Some embassy employees
have been moved out of Baghdad, but most remain there, State Department
spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Sunday.
Over the weekend, teams
totaling some 170 U.S. personnel began arriving in Baghdad, according to
Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby.
About 100 personnel were
moved into the region to provide security, airfield management and
logistics support, if needed, he said.
"The safety of personnel
serving in diplomatic missions abroad is among our highest priorities.
The presence of these additional forces will help enable the State
Department to continue their critical diplomatic mission and work with
Iraqis on challenges they are facing," Kirby said.
An amphibious assault
vehicle with 550 Marines aboard was expected to enter the Persian Gulf
on Monday, the Defense Department said. The Marines and their V-22
tilt-rotor aircraft could help evacuate Americans from Iraq if
necessary, a U.S. defense official said.
Gas prices rise
Even though the ISIS advance hasn't had a major effect on the country's oil exports, gas prices around the world are rising.
Oil experts say the 4%
price spike since June 6 -- which has taken a barrel of crude to $107
for the first time since September 2013 -- is being driven by fear that
exports could be hit later this year, just as world demand peaks.
CNN's Mohammed Tawfeeq, Yousuf Basil, Ashley
Fantz, Mark Morgenstein, Barbara Starr, Jim Acosta, Jim Sciutto, Elise
Labott and Chelsea J. Carter, and CNNMoney's Mark Thompson contributed
to this report.
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