Kerry, Zebari discuss terrorism, stability in Iraq

It is crucial that Iraq's government gain the trust and cooperation of local tribes and Iraqi citizens in order to combat terrorism, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry stressed on Tuesday. In a phone call to his Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari, Kerry "encouraged the government of Iraq to continue its efforts to empower local officials and tribes to isolate Al-Qaeda linked group ISIL and drive them out of populated areas." Details of the call were announced Wednesday by State Department Spokesperson Jen Psaki. Kerry "also emphasized the opportunity for the government of Iraq to focus on political initiatives, to increase political inclusiveness as the only path to long-term stability," she said. "He assured the foreign minister that we will continue to provide technical military advice and enhancing material support and stressed that military efforts must be fused with political and economic efforts to isolate extremist groups." For his part, Zebari "expressed appreciation for the support of the United States under the Strategic Framework Agreement for Iraq's struggle against terrorism and for the international support Iraq has been receiving in the fight against terrorism and its ongoing commitment to support the process of constitutional democracy," said Psaki. The two leaders then "noted progress on finalizing an agreement under discussion between Baghdad and Erbil on energy and revenue sharing, underscoring that this agreement should be concluded as soon as possible, as it will demonstrate that all Iraqis share equitably in the benefits of Iraq's natural resources." Kerry's call comes amidst two phone calls Vice President Joe Biden made to Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki on Tuesday and Wednesday, as the U.S. bolsters its Foreign Military Sales (FMS) to the country in its fight against Al-Qaeda