Iran’s New President, Tending to a Pivotal Alliance, Visits Iraq

New York Times-Sept12th2024

Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, arrived in Iraq on Wednesday for his first trip abroad since taking office in July, a demonstration of the value the Iranians place on the strategic alliance with their neighbor as tensions rise in the region around them.

Mr. Pezeshkian’s three-day trip will include visits to several cities that represent Iran’s political, religious, economic and security interests in Iraq. He was traveling with a delegation of senior officials and businessmen, according to Iranian media.

“I imagine this will be a very good trip for making economic, cultural, political and security ties,” Mr. Pezeshkian said, according to televised remarks on state media. “And I hope we can forge closer and brotherly ties to all Islamic countries starting from Iraq.”

In Baghdad, Mr. Pezeshkian met with the Iraqi prime minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, and President Abdul Latif Rashid. He was also expected to talk with other senior officials.

The trip comes as Iraq moves closer to taking a number of steps that align with Iran’s long-term objectives, including moving forward on negotiations for the departure of U.S. troops in Iraq.

Iran and the United States have regarded each other as enemies since the 1979 hostage crisis and have not had diplomatic relations since then. Iran has been leery of the presence of those U.S. troops, which they see as a potential danger.

But the drawdown will likely be spread over two years — far slower than Iran had wanted. And a number of questions remain unanswered, including whether U.S. troops in Syria would leave at the same time.

There are about 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq and about 900 in Syria, many of them Special Operations forces. The primary focus of both groups is helping to fight the Islamic State, the militant group that, especially in the last year or so, has begun to rebuild and to launch regular attacks in Syria.

A few hours before Mr. Pezeshkian’s plane touched down, a rocket attack on U.S. troops based at Baghdad Airport served as a reminder of the volatility in the region. Iraq’s joint command said it was investigating the attack’s origins, but there have been repeated attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq by armed groups with links to Iran.

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