Al-Kadhimi: International coalition will play the same role in Iraq after departure of US forces

Iraq 01:38 PM - 2021-07-19

.

In an interview with with the Saudi owned al-Hadath TV on Sunday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi stressed that the the departure of the US forces from Iraq will not prevent cooperation and training, the international coalition will be play the same role afterwards.

 

"We will go to Washington to organize the level of Iraqi-American relations, especially the American presence in Iraq and the process of withdrawing combat forces from Iraq. America is an important country and a great power that helped Iraq in the war against ISIS, and this visit will not concern the military aspect only, but also the economic, cultural and education aspects, and all that is in the interest of the Iraqi people and the future of relations between the two countries," he said.

 

"We did not say that the departure of the US forces would prevent cooperation and training, the international coalition will play the same role," he added.

 

"We have an agreement with NATO signed since 2012, and we are in the process of activating it. During my visit to Brussels, we agreed to revitalize the role of NATO. The alliance consists of many parties, not just the Americans, and fear and skepticism are misplaced," he explained.

 

U.S. President Joe Biden will host Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi at the White House on July 26, the White House said on Friday.

 

The visit will highlight the strategic partnership between the two countries and advance bilateral cooperation under a 2008 agreement that governed the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said.

 

In Baghdad on Thursday, Kadhemi and US ambassador Brett McGurk addressed the troop pullout from Iraq. Since 2014, over 3,500 foreign troops, including 2,500 Americans, have been stationed in Iraq to assist in the fight against the Islamic State.

 

The US troops withdrawal from Iraq cam after January, 2020 events when the Iraqi parliament voted to expel US troops from the country in response to the US killing top Iranian official Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani at Baghdad’s airport.

 

Al-Kadhimi also highlighted the US-Iran conflicts in the region and stressed that "the Iraqi government is responsible for Iraqi sovereignty, and if there is an abuse, the government will do its duty to protect diplomatic missions or sites where there are guests in Iraq."

 

"Iraq does not want to be an arena for the US-Iranian conflict, and we are working with all force with the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States to banish the specter of conflict and disagreement, and we are working to help find a mechanism for dialogue between Iran and America to resolve all points of contention between the two countries," Al-Kadhimi said.

 

In recent months, Iraq, which has long been a hotbed of antagonism between the US and Iran despite their shared hatred of ISIS, has seen an increase in rocket and drone strikes against American sites.

 

 

 

By Hiran

PUKmedia