
“It’s in our joint interest to stop ISIS,” she said after talks with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad.
She said German support for the Iraqi army should stay constant in 2016. Germany currently does not provide weapons, but its aid comes in the form of helmets, protective masks and binoculars. Germany has also provided anti-tank rockets and assault rifles to Kurdish forces in the country’s north.
Von der Leyen said Germany would also provide 3 000 protective suits for nuclear, biological and chemical attacks and medical materials.
She said Germany would keep checking to see whether it has any “specific strengths” that could be brought to bear in the fight against ISIS, but she refused to be more specific.


