First Iraq visit for Hutton
New defence secretary John Hutton has visited British forces in Iraq for the first time since taking on his new job earlier this month.
Having met with Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki in Baghdad the day before Mr Hutton travelled to the country’s second city, Basra, where British troops have been stationed since coalition forces ousted Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Basra has seen a noted improvement in security and British troops are currently on ‘overwatch’, with Iraqi forces now responsible for maintaining order on a day-to-day basis.
Mr Hutton toured downtown markets, chatted with locals and “saw first-hand how the Iraqi security forces are increasingly demonstrating their ability to keep the city safe”, the Ministry of Defence said.
Speaking afterwards he said he was “amazed by the sense of optimism” he had witnessed.
“The local military, police and ordinary citizens made it quite clear they were optimistic the city would not slip back into violence,” he said.
“And the new investment, development and infrastructure improvements I have seen will support this determination.”
