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Iranian military involvement has dramatically increased in Iraq over the past year as Tehran has delivered desperately needed aid to Baghdad in its fight against Islamic State militants, say U.S., Iraqi and Iranian sources. In the eyes of Obama administration officials, equally concerned about the rise of the brutal Islamist group, thats an acceptable role for now.

Yet as U.S. troops return to a limited mission in Iraq, American officials remain apprehensive about the potential for renewed friction with Iran, either directly or via Iranian-backed militias that once attacked U.S. personnel on a regular basis.

A senior Iranian cleric with close ties to Tehrans leadership, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss security matters, said that since the Islamic States capture of much of northern Iraq in June, Iran has sent more than 1,000 military advisers to Iraq, as well as elite units, and has conducted airstrikes and spent more than $1billion on military aid.

The areas that have been liberated from Daesh have been thanks to Irans advice, command, leaders and support, the cleric said, using the Arabic acronym for the group.

At the same time, Iraqs Shiite-led government is increasingly reliant on the powerful militias and a massive Shiite volunteer force, which together may now equal the size of Iraqs security forces.

Although the Obama administration says it is not coordinating directly with Iran, the two nations arms-length alliance against the Islamic State is an uncomfortable reality. Thats not only because some of the militia shock troops who have proved effective in fighting the Islamic State battled U.S. forces during the 2003-2011 war there, but also because, in Syria, Iran continues to support President Bashar al-Assad, whom the United States would like to see toppled. U.S. diplomats, meanwhile, are pushing ahead with negotiations to reach a deal on Irans nuclear program to prevent the country from developing a nuclear weapon.

Ali Khedery, who advised several U.S. ambassadors in Iraq, said the tensions that fueled a U.S.-Iran confrontation in Iraq after 2003 are masked by the shared desire to defeat the Islamic State, also known as ISIS.

ISIS will be defeated, said Khedery, who runs a strategic consulting firm in Dubai. The problem is that afterwards, there will still be a dozen militias, hardened by decades of battle experience, funded by Iraqi oil, and commanded or at least strongly influenced by [Irans Revolutionary Guard Corps]. And they will be the last ones standing.

While the departure of U.S. troops in 2011 provided space for Iran to expand its influence in Iraq, Tehrans support for paramilitary groups has intensified since the appearance of the Sunni militant group, which Irans Shiite leaders see as a serious threat to their interests. Combat troops from the Quds Force, a unit of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, now travel to Iraq from time to time for specific operations with coordination with the Kurdish and Iraqi governments, the senior Iranian cleric said.

Qassim Soleimani, the Quds Force commander, has become the face of Irans operations in Iraq, with photos of the commander on the front lines circulating on social media.

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The U.S. and Iran are aligned in Iraq against the Islamic ...