LONDON: Iraqi President Barham Salih said Wednesday his country must not be dragged into another conflict in the Middle East, as tensions rise over its neighbor Iran.
“We have had four decades of challenge and turmoil. We do not want to be embroiled in another war,” he said at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs think-tank in London.
“We cannot afford our country to be dragged into conflict.”
With tensions high between Iran and the United States, Salih insisted his country would not become “a staging post for belligerents.”
“We are asking everybody to cool it down... enough is enough,” he said.
“We do not want to be a victim of a conflict in Middle East. We have not finished the last one,” the Iraqi president added, referring to the US-led war on terror and battle against Daesh.
“It is in our national interests to have good relationship with Iran,” he said, whilst adding: “The US is a very important partner for Iraq.”
Salih, who took office in October, said Baghdad’s priority was “stability.”
“We need to transform Iraq from a zone of regional and proxy conflict into a zone of trade, infrastructure development, and jobs and a future for young people,” the 58-year-old said.
Salih visited British Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday for talks on security cooperation and nation-building.
May said Britain “stood ready to provide further support” to the Iraqi and Kurdish security forces, her Downing Street office said.
Iraq must not be dragged into another regional war: president
Iraq must not be dragged into another regional war: president
- ‘We cannot afford our country to be dragged into conflict’
- Saleh said Baghdad’s priority was ‘stability’
Iranian FM slams WEF’s ‘double standards’ after revoking his invite, but keeping Israeli president’s
Iranian FM slams WEF’s ‘double standards’ after revoking his invite, but keeping Israeli president’s
- Araghchi rejected the decision, claiming his appearance was cancelled “on the basis of lies and political pressure”
DUBAI: Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has criticized the World Economic Forum for rescinding his invitation to the annual meeting in Davos amid international scrutiny of his country’s crackdown on recent nationwide protests, accusing the forum of applying “blatant double standards” and succumbing to Western pressure.
The WEF confirmed that Araghchi will not attend this year’s summit, running until Jan. 23, saying that “although he was invited last fall, the tragic loss of lives of civilians in Iran over the past few weeks means that it is not right for the Iranian government to be represented at Davos this year.”
In a post on X, Araghchi rejected the decision, claiming his appearance was cancelled “on the basis of lies and political pressure from Israel and its US‑based proxies and apologists.”
The Iranian minister criticized what he called the WEF’s “blatant double standards” for keeping an invitation open to Israel’s President Isaac Herzog despite international accusations of genocide of the Palestinians in Gaza.
He also referenced Herzog’s participation in Davos in January 2024 despite legal complaints filed against him in Switzerland over his country’s conduct during its war in Gaza, which killed around 71,000 people.
“If WEF wants to feign a supposedly ‘moral’ stance, that is its prerogative. But it should at least be consistent about it,” Araghchi wrote, arguing that the decision exposed a “moral depravity and intellectual bankruptcy.”
Israel’s Herzog is scheduled to participate in a moderated discussion at WEF on Thursday.
