Iraqi fighters prepare to fire a weapon during fighting with IS militants at Al-Nibai, north of Baghdad Jan. 12.

BAGHDAD — Iraq told President Obama’s envoy that the U.S.-led coalition battling “Islamic State” needs to do more to help Iraq defeat the jihadists controlling large areas of the north and west of the country.

Parliament speaker Selim al-Jabouri said he delivered the message in a closed meeting with retired U.S. Marine General John Allen, who visited Baghdad this week for talks with Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi’s government.

“Until now our feeling is that the international support is not convincing,” Jabouri said. “We might see participation here or there, but it is not enough for the tough situation we are passing through.”

IS fighters swept through north Iraq last June, seizing the city of Mosul in a lightning offensive and approaching the capital Baghdad as Iraq’s army disintegrated.

The extremists’ advance was contained by Shi’a militia allied to the Baghdad government and Kurdish peshmerga fighters, backed by U.S.-led air strikes. U.S. soldiers who withdrew from Iraq in 2011, eight years after invading to overthrow Saddam Hussein, have also returned to help re-train Iraqi forces.

But Jabouri, one of Iraq’s most senior Sunni politicians, said he told Allen that the international community must “activate its role” because Iraq feels that, despite air strikes and other assistance, it is fighting largely on its own.

Jabouri’s frustration echoed the more guarded comments issued by Prime Minister Abadi after his own meeting with Allen on Tuesday.

A statement from Abadi’s office after the talks said U.S.-led alliance should “increase the tempo of the effective air strikes on ‘Islamic State’ positions”, and also called for the training program for Iraqi security forces to be expanded.

Abadi’s official Twitter account said the two men had agreed on both those points.