BERLIN, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Germany will switch military support to Iraqi armed forces in fighting against Islamic State, focusing on advice, training, logistics and medical assistance, the German Defense Ministry said Saturday.
German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen announced the plan on her trip to Iraq, where she met with Iraqi President, the Minister of Defense and the Prime Minister.
Germany will switch to another form of support in view of the areas liberated from the IS in Iraq and Syria and at the request of the Iraqi government, said von der Leyen.
Following the defeat of the IS Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, the armed forces in Iraq face reorganization and therefore need advice, training, logistics and medical assistance, the German Defense Ministry said on its website.
"Everyone knows that the IS has beaten, but not completely defeated," said von der Leyen. There are still "pockets" of terrorist militia in the country. This means scattered resistance nests of the IS.
Since the beginning of the war against IS in 2014, Germany has provided around 1 billion euros for development cooperation and humanitarian aid.
The focus of German involvement in Iraq is the training and counseling of the Kurdish and Iraqi security forces in the Erbil area as well as the supply of military equipment.
Now up to 150 German soldiers are stationed to train Kurdish soldiers near Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region. Germany's Tornado fighter jets make reconnaissance flights over Syria and Iraq from Jordan.
The mandates of the German armed forces granted by the German Federal Parliament for the fight against IS in Syria and Iraq are only a few weeks away.
In their coalition agreement reached this week, the Conservatives Union and the Social Democrats will focus on capacity building in the future, including the increased training and advice of security forces in Iraq, and the Bundeswehr wants to continue to make a contribution to the stabilization of Iraq.
