Iraqi-Iranian Agreement on ‘Achieving Stability in the Middle East’

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
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Iraqi-Iranian Agreement on ‘Achieving Stability in the Middle East’

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi during a welcoming ceremony in Tehran, Iran, June 26, 2022. President Website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

Iraq’s Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi met with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran on Sunday.

“We have agreed to work together to bring stability and calm to the region,” Kadhimi said in a joint televised news conference with Raisi.

“Dialogue with regional officials can resolve the regional issues without foreign intervention,” Raisi said.

Kadhimi arrived in Tehran after visiting Saudi Arabia’s Jeddah to discuss regional and bilateral issues. The premier is being accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising political and economic officials.

According to a statement carried by the Iraq News Agency (INA), the meeting reiterated commitment to supporting the armistice in Yemen and reinforcing peace efforts there. It also affirmed that a peace solution for the Yemeni crisis must stem from the internal will of Yemenis.

“We also agreed to make joint efforts to meet the challenges of food security posed by the Ukraine war,” said Raisi, according to Iran’s presidential website.

“Good bilateral and regional relations between Iraq and Iran can be very effective in role-playing of the two countries in the region and international issues,” added the president.

Raisi stressed the need to resolve the problems of the Yemeni people as soon as possible and establish a ceasefire in the country.

“Lifting the siege of Yemen and the Yemenis, and the Yemeni-Yemeni dialogue can solve the problems of this country and end the suffering of Yemeni people,” said Raisi.

“Without a doubt, the continuation of this war is fruitless and will not result in anything but the suffering of the Yemeni people, so this war must be ended as soon as possible and the ceasefire can be a step towards resolving the issues,” he added.

“Iran and Iraq emphasize the need for peace and stability in the region and we believe that peace in the region happens through the role-playing of the officials of all countries in the region and the presence of foreigners in the region will not solve any problem, but instead will add to the problems,” warned Raisi.



Top EU Officials Visit Ukraine in Show of Solidarity

01 December 2024, Ukraine, Kiev: Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanischyna (L) welcomes the new EU Council President Antonio Costa, the new EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas (2nd L), and the new EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos (R) upon their arrival in Kyiv, a few hours after taking office. Photo: Ansgar Haase/dpa
01 December 2024, Ukraine, Kiev: Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanischyna (L) welcomes the new EU Council President Antonio Costa, the new EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas (2nd L), and the new EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos (R) upon their arrival in Kyiv, a few hours after taking office. Photo: Ansgar Haase/dpa
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Top EU Officials Visit Ukraine in Show of Solidarity

01 December 2024, Ukraine, Kiev: Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanischyna (L) welcomes the new EU Council President Antonio Costa, the new EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas (2nd L), and the new EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos (R) upon their arrival in Kyiv, a few hours after taking office. Photo: Ansgar Haase/dpa
01 December 2024, Ukraine, Kiev: Ukraine's Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanischyna (L) welcomes the new EU Council President Antonio Costa, the new EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas (2nd L), and the new EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos (R) upon their arrival in Kyiv, a few hours after taking office. Photo: Ansgar Haase/dpa

European Council President Antonio Costa and Kaja Kallas, the EU's foreign policy chief, arrived in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Sunday, using the first day in their new roles to send a message of support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.
Their visit comes as Ukraine struggles to fend off a grinding Russian offensive and faces the uncertainty of US policy toward Kyiv when Donald Trump takes office next month, Reuters reported.
"From day one of the war, the EU has stood by the side of Ukraine," Costa posted on X alongside an image of himself, Kallas and EU enlargement chief Marta Kos arriving via train.

"From day one of our mandate, we are reaffirming our unwavering support to the Ukrainian people."
Both Kallas and Costa have been strong supporters of Ukraine since Russia's February 2022 invasion. However, neither can make specific pledges of further aid, requiring the support of the EU's national governments.
The EU says its institutions and member countries have made available some $133 billion in Ukraine aid since the start of the war, but future support remains uncertain especially if Trump reduces US support.
Trump has criticized the scale of aid for Kyiv and has said he will seek a swift end to the war, but without specifying exactly how.
On the battlefield, Moscow's troops are capturing village after village in a drive to eventually seize the industrial Donbas region, while Russian airstrikes are targeting Ukraine's hobbled energy grid as winter sets in.
"In my first visit since taking up office, my message is clear: the European Union wants Ukraine to win this war," Kallas wrote on X. "We will do whatever it takes for that."
As prime minister of Estonia, which borders Russia, Kallas emerged as one of the most vociferous critics of Russia. Moscow this year put her on a wanted list for destroying Soviet-era monuments.
Costa, a former prime minister of Portugal, is tasked with coordinating the work of the European Union's national leaders and chairing their summits as president of the European Council.
At a ceremony in Brussels on Friday, he said everyone was yearning for peace after more than 1,000 days of the Ukraine-Russia war, "especially the embattled and heroic Ukrainian people".
"Peace cannot mean capitulation. Peace must not reward the aggressor," he added.