BAGHDAD, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi President Barham Salih on Thursday called for continued international cooperation to combat terrorism and asserted the need to ease regional tensions to prevent terrorist groups

Salih's comments came during his meeting with British Defense Senior Advisor Sir John Lorimer and British Ambassador to Iraq Stephen Hickey in the presidential palace in Baghdad, a statement by the media office of the Presidency said.

"The war against terrorism continues and there is a need for international cooperation to continue the war on terrorist organizations as a cross-border threat that threatening all countries," the statement quoted Salih as saying.

Barham said that some of the extremist Islamic State (IS) militants seek from time to time to threaten the security and stability of citizens in some Iraqi towns, but the Iraqi security forces, in coordination with the anti-IS international coalition, continue to track the terrorists to prevent them from achieving their goals, according to the statement.

The president also stressed the importance of reducing the regional tension to prevent extremist terrorist organizations from exploiting crises to achieve their goals of threatening societal peace and security, the statement said.

For his part, Lorimer affirmed the importance of cooperation to combat terrorism, as well as his country's commitment to supporting the Iraqi security forces in training and arming to achieve security and stability in Iraq, it added.