U.S. State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce affirmed on Tuesday her country's support for American companies investing in Iraq. Speaking to reporters at the State Department in Washington, D.C., Bruce stated that the United States "supports economic deals that benefit all Iraqis, including the two agreements announced last week." She added, "We encourage Baghdad and Erbil to work together to expand domestic gas production as quickly as possible."

She clarified, "These economic partnerships will benefit both the American and Iraqi people and will help Iraq move forward toward energy independence."

Bruce noted that U.S. oil companies "have invested billions of dollars in Iraq's Kurdistan Region oil sector" and expressed hope "to see additional investments from American oil companies across all of Iraq."

Separately, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met last Friday with the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Masrour Barzani, discussing several issues, primarily economic cooperation.

The U.S. State Department said in a statement that the meeting in Washington addressed "opportunities to enhance trade and investment between the United States and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq."

The statement added that Secretary Rubio "praised the Prime Minister for finalizing deals with U.S. companies to expand natural gas production in the region, helping Iraq achieve energy independence."