The Iraqi prime minister is leaving for Washington, distancing himself from the mediating role with Tehran

[yota691]

The Iraqi prime minister is leaving for Washington, distancing himself from the mediating role with Tehran

Arab Reports

Baghdad

Baraa Al-Shammari

18 August 2020

 

Al-Kazemi meets Trump next Thursday (Anatolia 

The office of the Iraqi Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi , announced today, Tuesday, that the latter is heading to the United States of America for a two-day visit, during which he will meet with US President Donald Trump. 

An Iraqi government statement said that Al-Kazemi will discuss with US President Donald Trump, in their meeting scheduled for next Thursday, strengthening bilateral relations between Baghdad and Washington, in addition to discussing current developments in the regional arena and issues of common interest, adding that the Iraqi prime minister will hold talks with senior officials during his visit. US officials, including discussing bilateral relations and enhancing joint cooperation in many fields, foremost among which are security, economy, health, and other sectors.  

It is scheduled that the second round of the US-Iraqi strategic dialogue will be held during the visit, during which Al-Kazemi will be accompanied by a large delegation of Iraqi officials, including six ministers, most notably defense and national security, the interior and foreign affairs.  

Al-Kazemi had made a press statement before leaving the country for the United States, in which he said that his country still needs American assistance in order to confront the threat posed by the terrorist organization "ISIS", indicating that the form of assistance will depend on the changing nature of the threat. "We will still need cooperation and assistance at levels that may not require direct military and field support," he said, adding that the assistance may include training and support with weapons. 

Al-Kazemi tried to distance his country from talking about transmitting messages between Baghdad and Washington, saying, "We in Iraq do not play the role of the postman." We are committed to reforming the security establishment, enhancing its ability to deal with these types of challenges, holding accountable those who fail to protect civilians, and putting an end to these outlaw groups. "

It is expected that Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, who arrived in Washington on Monday night - Tuesday, talks with his US counterpart Mike Pompeo, in preparation for Al-Kazemi's meeting with US President Donald Trump next Thursday.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the dialogues will start on Wednesday at the level of foreign ministers.

An Iraqi government official confirmed to Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed that Baghdad has no intention to play the role of mediator between America and Iran, indicating that there is an Iraqi intention to search for everything that would achieve the interest of Iraq, especially with regard to helping Iraqi forces fight the remaining elements of the organization. ISIS. "

He pointed out that there are other important files that will be presented in the second round of the dialogue, stressing the Iraqi delegation’s keenness to achieve gains in the dialogue so as not to detract from Iraqi sovereignty.

Yesterday, Monday, a spokesman for the Iraqi Prime Minister Ahmed Mulla Talal said that Al-Kazemi's visit to the United States of America will discuss several files in the fields of security, economy, energy and health, indicating that this visit represents the second round of the strategic dialogue between Baghdad and Washington.

Meanwhile, Al-Kazemi is still subject to pressure from parliamentarians and political forces close to Iran to push him to request the removal of US forces during his visit to Washington.

A member of parliament for the "Al-Fateh" coalition (the political wing of the Popular Mobilization Forces), Muhammad Al-Baldawi, confirmed that the survival of the American forces in the country would be a threat to Iraq and the region, explaining, in a press statement, that "Washington's negotiations should focus on removing those forces from Iraq and keeping them away from Interference with the internal affairs and the Iraqi economic file. " 

He added that "Iraq needs, in its negotiations with America, basic pillars related to the United States' respect for the sovereignty of Iraq, and that this should be done by not interfering in Iraqi affairs."

Also, a member of parliament for the Al-Fateh coalition, Amer Al-Fayez, said on Sunday that “Al-Kazimi is required during his visit to the United States of America to approach the American authorities to remove their forces, because Iraq does not need them.”

 

 

[yota691]

Al-Kazemi's visit to Washington is fraught with obstacles set by pro-Iranian groups

Posted in: 18/08/2020 - 11:46Last updated: 18/08/2020 - 11:44

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi addresses the Iraqis on May 9, 2020 - Office of the Prime Minister of Iraq / AFP

6 minutes

 

Baghdad (AFP)

Attacks against US interests in Iraq have become daily and the parties behind them are less ambiguous at a time when the confrontation between the parties supporting Iran and Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi, who meets the US President on Thursday for the first time, intensifies.

Al-Kazemi took office in May in a country where Iran and the United States have fought over influence. It is expected that he will discuss with Donald Trump the presence of about five thousand American soldiers in Iraq since the war against ISIS and how to ensure their safety.

For its part, Iran has the support of the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of paramilitary factions now integrated into state institutions, and is calling on the Iraqi parliament to remove US forces.

 

The crowd denies any connection to the attacks that targeted the US presence and interests in Iraq, but videos and messages posted on the Internet reveal a possible link with them by groups operating under different names.

"It is likely that the individuals who make up the new militias emanated from the pre-existing armed factions that make up the PMF. They are working under new banners to conceal and protect the leadership of existing armed groups from facing potential retaliation," Ramzi Mardini, a researcher at the University of Chicago's Pearson Institute, told AFP. ".

Other experts believe that the aim of the attacks is to embarrass Al-Kazemi, who is closer to the US administration than his predecessor, and who is campaigning to regain control of the border posts where armed groups carry out smuggling and ransom payments for import and export.

This angered the Iraqi factions supporting Iran, which lost its operations commander, Abu Mahdi Al-Muhandis, who was killed along with Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in an American strike near Baghdad airport. While Iran is subject to harsh US sanctions.

It carried out 39 missile attacks against US interests in Iraq from October to the end of July. The attacks intensified after the confirmation of the meeting in the White House between Al-Kazemi and Trump.

The pace has increased since the fourth of August, when seven attacks targeted Iraqi logistical convoys carrying supplies that were on their way to bases housing American soldiers, and six missile attacks targeted American sites, including the embassy in Baghdad.

After an attack against a military convoy in the south, on August 7, a man was arrested in possession of explosive devices and an identification card confirming his belonging to a faction within the crowd and preparing him to cross the security checkpoints, according to an intelligence source.

Since the beginning of the attacks, a group has claimed responsibility for targeting a logistical convoy in Dhi Qar, southern Iraq, calling itself the "Brigades of the Twentieth Revolution", in reference to the 1920 revolution against the British.

The Twentieth Revolution Brigades published a statement on the Telegram app posted by pro-Iranian accounts, after Qais Khazali, one of the leaders of the Popular Mobilization Forces, compared his men with the real men of the Twentieth Revolution.

Another group calling itself "The Rebel League" also broadcast footage of a drone of the US Embassy inside the fortified Green Zone, threatening to bomb it.

Ramzi Mardini said that operating under different names "gives these groups room for maneuver and avoids direct responsibility for attacks on American interests."

And if these groups operate outside of government, Washington is unlikely to hold the government accountable and punish Baghdad.

He added that the intensification of recent attacks "is a message that the prime minister cannot deter these attacks by threatening raids and arrests against militias."

At the end of June, 14 people belonging to Kataib Hezbollah, the most militant faction in the Popular Mobilization Forces, were arrested, accused of launching missile attacks on Americans.

After they appeared before a judge affiliated with the Hashd, 13 of the detainees were released after three days, except for one man who is still in detention.

In the wake of the repeated attacks, many residents of the south, where most of the attacks take place, draw similarities between propaganda clips and chants published by Shiite groups and those spread by Al Qaeda and the Islamic State. The Shiite population fears a decline to the same fate that led to the devastation of Sunni areas during the war against Islamic extremists.

And in a country that emerged ten years ago from a bloody sectarian war between Sunnis and Shiites, the government fears a renewed conflict between Iraqis.

Several government officials say their strategy is to move, but without naming anyone.

When a German woman was kidnapped for three days in July, Baghdad did not charge anyone after her release. However, officials familiar with the course of the investigation reported that the names of armed factions had appeared. An intelligence official told AFP that the perpetrators were "from factions claiming to belong to the crowd."

Before that, also in July, the assassination of researcher Hisham Al-Hashemi in Baghdad was another message addressed to Al-Kazemi. Al-Hashemi was close to the prime minister and worked particularly on the file of the crowd's organizational and financial networks.

After a month and a half, the investigation has not yet revealed the parties behind the assassination.

On Friday evening, an activist who opposed the increasing influence of armed factions in Basra was assassinated by firing twenty bullets at him from a pistol equipped with a silencer.

© 2020 AFP

[yota691]

08-18-2020 10:57 AM

Al-Kazemi on the mediation between Iran and America: We are not playing the role of the postman

 

 

Baghdad / Al-Akhbariya

Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi confirmed that Iraq will not play the role of a postman for the sake of mediation between Iran and America.

"Iraq still needs US assistance to confront the threat posed by the Islamic State, and we are committed to introducing reforms to the security sector after launching almost daily attacks on government headquarters," Al-Kazemi said in a statement to the Associated Press.

He explained that "Iraq needs cooperation and assistance at levels that may not require direct military and field support today," noting that "cooperation will reflect the changing nature of the threat of terrorism, including continuous training and weapons support."

Regarding the assassination of Al-Hashemi, Al-Kazemi explained that “these criminal acts are the result of many years of conflict,” blaming “bad policies and improper management by his predecessors to undermine the authority of the state,” stressing that “it is not surprising, therefore, that criminals work here and there to destabilize security. "

He stated that the investigation "is ongoing, the case is open, and much evidence has been found, but it remains classified."

"We are committed to reforming the security establishment, enhancing its ability to deal with these kinds of challenges, holding accountable those who fail to protect civilians, and putting an end to these outlaw groups," he added.

"The protection of diplomatic missions in the Green Zone and the US-led coalition has been strengthened in response to the repeated missile launches," he said.

When asked whether he was transmitting any messages from Tehran to Washington, after a recent visit there, he said, "We do not play the role of postman in Iraq."

[yota691]

18-08-2020 12:03 PM

Al-Kazemi is heading to the United States on an official visit

 

 

Baghdad / Al-Akhbariya

The Prime Minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, left today, Tuesday, the capital, Baghdad, heading to the United States of America, at the head of a government delegation, in response to an official invitation.

According to a statement from his media office that Al-Akhbariya received, Al-Kazemi will meet with US President Donald Trump on Thursday, and during the meeting, talks will be held on strengthening bilateral relations between Baghdad and Washington, in addition to discussing current developments on the regional arena, and discussing issues of common interest.

During his visit, Al-Kazemi will hold "talks with senior US officials, which will include discussing bilateral relations between the two countries, and enhancing joint cooperation in many fields, foremost among which are security, economy, health, and other sectors."

[6ly410]

 

[6ly410]

 

[DWS112]

Al-Kazemi arrives in Washington

 

18/8/2020 18:02

 

Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi arrived, on Wednesday, in the US capital, Washington, on an official visit.

Al-Kazemi's media office said, in a brief statement, which Alsumaria News received a copy of, that "Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi arrives in the United States of America."

 

During the visit, Al-Kazemi will meet with US President Donald Trump and US officials to discuss strengthening relations and joint cooperation in several areas, in addition to discussing regional developments, according to a previous statement by the Prime Minister's Office.

[A.M.]

Go Prez go, you can do it😁

[DWS112]

Meet the President - Thursday, Aug 20th, ( Tomorrow ) is also a National Holiday in Iraq!  Islamic New Year👈

Edited August 19, 2020 by DWS112

[NEPatriotsFan1]

6 hours ago, DWS112 said:

Meet the President - Thursday, Aug 20th, ( Tomorrow ) is also a National Holiday in Iraq!  Islamic New Year👈