No request from Baghdad to extend operation against IS to Iraq - Lavrov

MOSCOW, October 5. /TASS/. Moscow has received no official requests from Baghdad to extend the Russian operation against the Islamic State to Iraq, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday. "I’ve heard the Iraqi prime minister’s statements that they would be interested in the Russian aircraft’s help in destroying terrorists in Iraq’s territory," Lavrov said. "The prime minister said this after the first days of our operation in Syria proved the highest efficient of our military. But we received no official requests from Iraq." Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has already sent a request to Russia asking to strike the Islamic State positions in Iraq’s territory, Al-Jazeera reported. Read more