Trump Bashes Predecessors' Iraq Strategies in Abadi Meeting

U.S. president praises Iraqi soldiers for ‘tough job’ in Mosul
Iraqi leader first Arab head of government to meet Trump

U.S. President Donald Trump, left, welcomes Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi upon his arrival for a meeting at the White House, on March 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
Photographer: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

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By Margaret Talev and Shannon Pettypiece

March 20, 2017 at 8:30 PM UTC

Updated on

March 20, 2017 at 10:07 PM UTC

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President Donald Trump used a White House meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to criticize both his immediate predecessors’ military strategies in the country.

“Perhaps we shouldn’t have gone in, but certainly we shouldn’t have left, we never ever should have left and the vacuum was created,” Trump said Monday during a photo session with Abadi.