Iran offered Iraq an 'open cheque' to help them battle Isis, says ambassador

Lukman Faily said Iran had offered Iraq 'anything we wanted'

A Peshmerga fighter fires at an Isis position in Iraq. Kurdish officials claim that Isis has previously used chlorine gas against Peshmerga fighters. (JM LOPEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran offered Iraq an 'open cheque' to help them battle Isis, the Iraqi Ambassador has been reported as saying.

According to ABC News, Lukman Faily, told a security forum this week that Iran sees Isis as a threat to its national security, adding: "And their approach to it, more or less, was to have what I might call an open check with Iraq."

According to the report, Mr Faily went on to say that Iran had offered Iraq "anything we wanted", including troops and the use of its air force.

According to the report, Mr Faily said Iran had offered Iraq "literally anything we wanted" including troops and the use of its air force.

He indicated that Iraq has not taken Iran up on the offer in its entirety.

During offensives in Iraq in June 2014, Isis gained control of much of the country’s oil infrastructure. In May, the Iraqi army was defeated in Ramadi.

The UN estimates that more than three million Iraqis have been forced to leave the country as a result of the conflict.

The US has launched more than 2,600 air strikes against Isis targets in Iraq since the military campaign began on 8 August 2014.