BAGHDAD: Iraq on Monday rejected accusations by the US defense chief that its security forces dodged battle in Ramadi and lack the will to fight the Islamic State group.

Pentagon chief Ashton Carter argued that the May 17 fall of Ramadi, the worst defeat Baghdad has suffered in almost a year, could have been avoided.

“We have an issue with the will of the Iraqis to fight IS and defend themselves,” he told CNN on Sunday.

Washington has been one of Baghdad’s key partners in the war to reclaim the ground lost to IS last year and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi expressed disbelief at Carter’s stinging comments.

“I’m surprised why he said that. I mean, he was very supportive of Iraq. I am sure he was fed with the wrong information,” Abadi told the BBC.

A senior Iranian general involved in the fight against IS hit out at Washington, saying it had failed to help Iraqi forces in Ramadi despite its military presence at the Al-Asad air base in the same province.

“Secretary Carter’s remarks are surprising and likely to negatively affect the morale of the ISF,” Iraq analyst Ahmed Ali said, referring to Iraqi security forces.

Ahmed Assadi, spokesman of the Hashed Al-Shaabi umbrella organization for Shiite militia and volunteers which Abadi reluctantly called in after Ramadi’s fall, reacted angrily to Carter’s comments.

“This lack of will the US defense secretary mentioned is how the enemies of Iraq have tried to depict the Iraqi security forces,” he told AFP.

An Iraqi military commander in Anbar described Carter’s comments as “a provocation to the Iraqi army and Iraqi people designed to make people lose their trust in the army.”

“It makes my heart bleed because we lost Ramadi but I can assure you we can bring it back soon,” Abadi told the BBC.