Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki said Thursday that the political track is necessary to go with the military track in fighting against the blitzkrieg of the Sunni extremist groups.
"There have to be two parallel tracks to proceed: the first is the work on the ground and military operations against the terrorists, and the second is to follow up the political process and holding the meeting of the Council of Representatives ( Parliament) on time," Maliki told British Foreign Secretary William Hague during their meeting in the capital Baghdad, according to a statement issued by Maliki's office.
"Moving forward with these two tracks is the way to defeat the terrorists," Maliki said.
He added that the Iraqi security forces have "regained the initiative and the picture will change in the near future."
For his part, Hague expressed his support to Iraq in confronting the terrorism, saying that "we have come here to support Iraq and cooperate together to defeat terrorism," the statement said.
Earlier in the day, Hague arrived in Baghdad in a surprise visit to hold talks with Iraqi leaders to discuss the bilateral ties and the political and security development in the country.
Later, Hague is expected to meet with Kurdish President Masoud Barzani in the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern part of the country.
The visit of the top British diplomat came amid a worsening security conditions that began less than two weeks ago when armed Sunni insurgents, spearheaded by an al-Qaida splinter group Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL), launched a surprise offensive that led to the debacle of Iraqi security forces and loss of a large part of the country's northern and western territories.