BAGHDAD, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Acting U.S. Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan arrived Tuesday in Baghdad on an unannounced visit to meet with Iraqi officials and U.S. troops in Iraq, local media reported.

Shanahan is expected to meet with Iraqi top officials, including Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, as well as visiting U.S. troops stationed in the country, the Iraqi NINA news agency said.

Shanahan, 56, officially took over the Pentagon early in January as acting U.S. secretary of defense after his predecessor, James Mattis, who resigned on Dec. 20 over policy disagreements with U.S. President Donald Trump, including whether to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria.