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WASHINGTON: The Iraqi Embassy in Washington reiterated on Wednesday, Baghdad’s right to independently conclude agreements and memoranda of understanding, asserting the country’s full sovereignty in the face of growing regional and international scrutiny.
According to the Iraqi News Agency, the embassy said Iraq “has the right to enter into agreements in accordance with its constitution and national laws, in a manner consistent with its supreme interests.” It emphasized that Iraq’s decisions are rooted in its “independent national will” and that the country “is not subordinate to the policies of any other state.”
The remarks come in the wake of a new security pact signed between Iraq and Iran in Baghdad earlier this week, aimed at tightening coordination along their shared border. The agreement, reached during the visit of Iranian official Ali Larijani, builds on a March 2023 deal to enhance security in Iraq’s Kurdish region, which Tehran accuses of harboring armed opposition groups.
Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, who oversaw the signing, framed the pact as part of broader cooperation to secure both countries’ frontiers and promote regional stability. Iraqi officials say the measures are intended to curb cross-border infiltration by Iranian Kurdish groups accused by Tehran of fomenting unrest, and may include provisions for the extradition of opposition leaders.
The timing of the agreement underscores the complex balancing act facing Baghdad. While deepening ties with Tehran, the Iraqi government is also under intensifying US pressure to rein in pro-Iran militias, dismantle advanced weapons systems in their possession, and return militia-held territories to state control.