Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi concluded a visit to Tehran, his first official visit abroad since taking office, after meeting with a number of Iranian top officials including President Hasan Rouhani and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
According to Iranian media, Khamenei said that his country does not interfere in Iraq-US relations, but urges Iraq to implement the bill calling for US forces to be expelled from Iraq, saying their “presence causes insecurity.”
Kadhimi also met with Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and reiterated that Iraq would not allow its soil to become a security threat against Iran, stressing the need to respect privacy and avoid interfering in internal affairs of both countries.
The Iraqi PM said that the talks discussed the “important strategic issues and cooperation between the two countries,” describing Iran as an important neighbor of Iraq. He stressed that the relations between both will continue as required, so “we will continue to work to expand relations in all economic, cultural and security fields.”
Qalibaf, in turn, indicated that the relations between the two countries entered an important stage of their history with the fall of the former Iraqi regime headed by Saddam Hussein.
He pointed out that the two countries look forward to strengthening their relations in various fields despite the coronavirus pandemic.
The Speaker also condemned the assassination of major general Qasem Soleimani of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Iraqi militia leader Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, saying such a crime is not a simple issue and the assassination must be pursued vigorously.
Qalibaf noted that the region will not reach stability as long as foreign forces are present in the region, adding, “we also believe that a strong and developed Iraq would be a significant model for bilateral and regional relations.”
During his visit, Kadhimi also met with the Secretary-General of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, who asserted that joint efforts of regional countries for the immediate expulsion of the US terrorist forces from the region are “inevitable” for strengthening peace and stability in the region.
The Iraqi PM’s visit was discussed in Iranian media, with “Kayhan” newspaper, which is affiliated with Khamenei’s office, highlighting what the Supreme Leader said on US presence in Iraq and his threat to retaliate Soleimani's killing.
The official daily of the government, “Iran”, shared two photos on its front pages of the Supreme Leader and President’s reception of the Prime Minister. It indicated that Khamenei stressed his country would respond to Soleimani’s assassination while saying Rouhani discussed the trade volume required from Iran.
Meanwhile, the Director of international affairs at the country’s central bank, Hamid Ghanbari, announced that Tehran and Baghdad are in talks over foreign exchange cooperation deal, and Iran is negotiating an agreement on foreign exchange with Iraq.
Ghanbari said that the two countries are finalizing a foreign currency agreement, based on which several billions of dollars will be injected into Iran's market in the near future.
The official described the talks as “useful and constructive”, adding that a final agreement would be concluded “during the Iraqi Prime Minister’s visit on Tuesday”.
“Under the accord, we [Iran] expect a significant amount of foreign exchange resources, amounting to several billion dollars, will enter the market and a large part of the foreign exchange demand will be met from the same source,” the Iranian official pointed out.
