Iraqi caretaker Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi met with the US ambassador on Monday to say cooperation is key to prevent “sliding towards an open war” between the US and Iran. Abdul Mahdi said Washington must also work with Iraq to bring about the withdrawal of American troops from Iraqi soil. He told US Ambassador Matthew Tueller that relations with Washington must be built on a "sound basis." Tensions in Iraq and the wider Middle East are at a boiling point, after the US killed Irans top general, Qassem Soleimani, last week in an airstrike in Baghdad. Iraqs parliament voted Sunday to expel US and foreign troops in the wake of the killing. US forces were in Iraq to help fight against ISIS militants and train Iraqi forces.