US Secretary of State Kerry visits Iraq

Baku. 8 April. REPORT.AZ/ U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited Iraq on Friday to show support for its prime minister, who is grappling with a political crisis, a collapsing economy and a fitful fight to retake ground from Islamic State militants, Report informs referring to the AFP.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi last week unsettled Iraq's political elite with a proposed cabinet reshuffle that aims to curb entrenched corruption by replacing long-time politicians with technocrats and academics.

His aim is to free Iraqi ministries from the grip of a political class that has used the system of ethnic and sectarian quotas instituted after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 to amass wealth and influence through corruption.

U.S. officials are worried that the political unrest may harm Iraq's efforts to retake territory it has lost to Islamic State militants, notably its second city of Mosul, seized when parts of the Iraqi army collapsed in 2014.

Kerry's visit "will underscore our strong support for the Iraqi government as it addresses significant security, economic, and political challenges," State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement.