WASHINGTON, Reuters — In a warning to Iran, U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday said foreign fighters in Iraq must respect its sovereignty when assisting in the fight against Islamic State (IS) militants.

Obama made the comments in the Oval Office in the White House after meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi.

“Any foreign assistance that is helping defeat [IS] has to go through the Iraq government. That’s how you respect Iraqi sovereignty,” Obama said.

Concern over Iran’s role in the fight against IS was expected to be a feature in the Obama-Abadi talks as Iran-backed Shia militias have played a major role in battling the group.

Obama said the two men had discussed Iran’s role in Iraq at length.
While the two men met inside the White House, demonstrators protested outside – pushing Obama to give Iraqis more support to fight IS militants and reduce Iraq’s dependence on Iran.

Protesters said Tehran wields enormous influence in Iraq and they want the U.S. to encourage Abadi to distance himself from Iran, which they say has been aggressive with its neighbors in the region.

They are also pushing for Camp Liberty in Iraq – an Iranian dissident camp – to be declared a refugee camp under United Nations’ supervision – which they say will relieve Abadi of “pressure from the Iranian regime.”.