Prime Minister Tony Abbott has broken with tradition by not taking Australian journalists on a trip to Baghdad, even cutting out a television crew that was ready and waiting in nearby Dubai.

Instead, Mr Abbott's visit to the Iraqi capital to meet Australian troops based there was captured only by a cameraman and photographer who is employed by the Prime Minister's office itself.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott and his Iraqi counterpart Haider al-Abardi.

To add to media frustration, the usual security protocol of not reporting a visit by a prime minister to a high-risk place until after the trip has finished was broken by an Iraqi news organisation nearly a week before Mr Abbott arrived.

The decision to exclude the Australian crew meant that no independent footage could be gathered and no Australian journalists were present to quiz Mr Abbott during a joint appearance with Iraqi counterpart Haider al-Abadi.