Between the return of Prime Minister Mustafa al Kadhimi from his tour of the Gulf, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and the start of the third round of the strategic dialogue between the United States and Iraq, pro-Iranian militias have intensified their pressures and threats .
On April 8, the US Ambassador to Baghdad Matthew Tueller at a press conference stated that the tasks of the international coalition forces in Iraq are basically those of advising, training and supporting the Iraqi armed forces in view of the development of their combat skills. .
Immediately after the end of this third round of negotiations, Prime Minister Al Kadhimi stressed that “the results of the strategic dialogue are the way to restore a normal situation in Iraq” and added that “it is the right way to resolve the crisis”.
In the final communiqué, however, no mention is made of any scheduling for the withdrawal of foreign troops from the country, but both actors stated that “the parties confirm that the mission of the United States and the coalition forces has now become a mission centered on roles. consultative and training “.
Nobody’s land
Iran was indirectly part of the dialogue. Just a day before work began, the commander of the Iranian Quds Armed Forces Special Corps, Ismail Qaani, flew to Baghdad and met with Iraqi militia leaders, but no comment was made regarding this secret visit.
Saad al Saadi, spokesman for the pro-Iranian militia Asayeb al Haqq, said the government “must send a letter to the United Nations Security Council requesting the immediate withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq and the dismantling of all military bases that they violate the Iraqi constitution ”.
A coalition comprising many Shia militias called the Iraqi Resistance Committee rejected the dialogue as a whole and reiterated the urgency of troop withdrawal, threatening new attacks.
Poised between these two conflicting options (dialogue or attacks), on which the future of relations between the United States and Iran in the era of the Biden presidency depends, Iraq remains in a no man’s land.
(Translation by Francesco De Lellis)
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