Following his visit to Egypt, Secretary of State John Kerry is in Baghdad today for talks with the embattled Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other political leaders. Ahead of his arrival, Kerry signaled the Obama administration is prepared to drop support for Maliki, calling for leadership “prepared to represent all of Iraq.”

Secretary of State John Kerry: “We will help Iraqis to complete this transition if they choose it. If they want, they have an opportunity to choose leadership that can represent all of Iraq, a unity government that brings people together and focus on ISIL [Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant]. And I am convinced that they will do so, not just with our help, but with the help of almost every country in the region, as well as others in the world who will always stand up against the tyranny of this kind of terrorist activity.”

Previous reports have claimed the White House has conditioned military support for the Iraqi government on Maliki’s resignation. Kerry’s comments follow reports the White House has conditioned military support for the Iraqi government on Maliki’s resignation. Kerry’s visit to Baghdad comes as Sunni militants with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria have captured more territory. Over the weekend, ISIS militants seized three border crossings with Syria and Jordan, as well as four nearby towns.