The US Secretary of State says America will stand with Iraq as they 'meet their moment of challenge'. John Kerry is in Baghdad for talks with Iraqi leaders as ISIS rebels continue to take over large parts of the country.
He has pledged 'intense and sustained' support for the Iraqi army.
He has also committed to helping the local army shore up their defences.
Th US President Barack Obama has warned that Islamic extremists in Iraq could destabilise the whole of the Middle East.
He says ISIS could yet grow in power and threaten to destabilise the whole region.
Yesterday militants took control of two Iraqi border points with Jordan and Syria. ISIS is also believed to have captured four towns in the west of the country.
And in northern Iraq the airport in the town of Tal Afar has also fallen to the rebels.
Colin Freeman, chief foreign correspondent with the Sunday Telegraph. He told Newstalk Breakfast earlier that the ISIS gains could be even bigger than thought.
Mr. Obama has told 'Face the Nation' on CBS the group could threaten America.
President Obama said that the threat that violence could spill over regional borders was just one of an array of threats the US must guard against, citing the group Boko Haram in north Africa and al-Qaeda groups in Yemen.
"What we can't do is think that we're just going to play whack-a-mole and send US troops occupying various countries wherever these organisations pop up" Mr. Obama said on CBS 'Face The Nation'.
"We're going to have to have a more focused, more targeted strategy and we're going to have to partner and train local law enforcement and military to do their jobs as well".
Meanwhile, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Eamon Gilmore has said says it is critical that all Iraqi political leaders come together in a more constructive way to overcome the crisis, to reject sectarianism and to promote national unity.
He was commenting ahead of a meeting in Luxembourg today of EU Foreign Ministers, at which the current crisis in Iraq and developments in Ukraine will dominate discussions.
The Council will also meet with the UN Special Representative on Iraq, Nikolay Mladenov, to discuss the plight of Iraqi civilians, half a million of whom have been forced to flee their homes as a result of intense fighting.
Mr. Gilmore said Ireland last week committed €200,000 in emergency aid to provide tents and hygiene kits to those most in need in Iraq, and is ready to offer more aid.
