NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has requested more New Zealand personnel in Iraq.

Ardern said Saturday that she had met with Secretary-General Stoltenberg for a wide-ranging conversation around the Middle East and regional security strategies there.

"He gave me a rundown of NATO training operations in Iraq, and he made a request for more New Zealand assistance there."

Ardern said she made no commitment either way.

READ MORE:

* New Zealand extends Iraq and Afghanistan deployments

* Jacinda Ardern isn't sure whether NZDF Afghanistan mission a success

* First Iraqi troops graduate Kiwi training

"He mentioned it for the first time today. I said I couldn't make any comment until I had the chance to speak to my colleagues."

Ardern was speaking from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as part of a European trip which saw her meet British Prime Minister Theresa May to secure a trade agreement between New Zealand and the UK.

New Zealand has some presence in Iraq, with 143 personnel involved in a joint-training mission with Australia since 2015, part of the US-led Operation Inherent Resolve.

Most of the soldiers are stationed in Camp Taji, where they train Iraqi personnel.

The New Zealand force is scheduled to be scaled down from 143 to 121 personnel in the coming months.

In November 2018 Ardern said the deployment "is strictly non-combat and it will stay that way".

In a statement, Stoltenberg said New Zealand and NATO were "far apart on the map but we are very close as partners".

"We're also happy and glad that New Zealand plays a valuable role in the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. You are training Iraqi forces.

"NATO has trained Iraqi forces for some time but we're now scaling up our presence in Iraq with a new training mission and in our meeting today, we discussed how New Zealand and NATO can best coordinate our efforts in the fight against terrorism. Both in Afghanistan, in Iraq and elsewhere."