US President Joe Biden signed on Tuesday a decree extending the national emergency regarding the situation in Iraq.
Successive US presidents have extended the state of emergency around 20 times since 2003 after former President George Bush issued that year Executive Order 13303 on Iraq.
The decree prohibits the export of some special goods, in addition to sanctioning individuals and entities that pose a threat to the national security and foreign policy of Iraq and the US.
“Obstacles to the orderly reconstruction of Iraq, the restoration and maintenance of peace and security in the country, and the development of political, administrative, and economic institutions in Iraq continue to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States,” a White House statement revealed.
“Therefore, I have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency declared in Executive Order 13303 with respect to the stabilization of Iraq,” it added.
Political researcher Aqil Abbas said the extension had no major “significance”.
Abbas told Asharq Al-Awsat that it is a routine renewal of an executive order that was issued in 2003, and this process has been repeated around 20 times so far.
“The renewal isn’t linked to Congressional discussions about laws related to Iraq but is instead linked to legal dates in which renewal usually occurs 90 days before the expiry of the previous renewal,” added Abbas.
He further noted that the National Emergencies Act was issued in the 1970s and it allowed the president to renew national security-related presidential resolutions without getting back to Congress. The resolution related to Iraq falls under this category.
Launching from this renewal, the US President is allowed to impose security and economic sanctions or to track individuals and groups accused of terrorism and undermining security or sabotaging the economy, he went on to say.
Local observers consider that former US President Donald Trump relied on the extended law to target the IRGC Quds Force Commander, Qassem Soleimani, and the deputy of the Popular Mobilization Forces leader, Abu Mahdi al-Mohandis, in 2020 near Baghdad International Airport.
Abbas believes that the extension serves Iraq because it means continuing to apply the laws issued by the US Administration regarding supporting Iraq and combatting groups that undermine stability.
US Ambassador to Baghdad Alina Romanowski said earlier that the Iraqis don’t wish to have a state ruled by the militias, expressing the US commitment to the region.
Romanowski reiterated the strategic significance of Iraq according to the US.
