Iran’s Parliament speaker Ali Larijani has congratulated Iraqi Prime Minister al-Abadi on the achievements of the Baghdad government on different fronts.
“During your tenure, Iraq secured three important accomplishments which will go down in history,” Larijani told the Iraqi premier in a meeting in Tehran.
Larijani said the first achievement was that Baghdad rid Iraq of terrorists.
“Although there are some movements [by terrorists] in some areas, these regions will soon be purged of militants thanks to your measures,” Larijani further told the visiting Iraqi prime minister.
The second achievement was that “you managed to prevent the disintegration of Iraq with prudence and [by taking] the necessary measures,” the parliament speaker further told Abadi.
“The third accomplishment is Iraq’s military power, which relies on people, and it is important to safeguard it in order to protect Iraq,” said Larijani.
“Although the presence of terrorists has inflicted costs on you, this problem gave rise to a powerful Iraq, and now it’s time for you to lay the groundwork for the reconstruction and economic development of Iraq,” Larijani further told Abadi.
Iran’s Backing for Iraqi Nation, Govt.
Larijani then expressed Tehran’s backing for the Iraqi people and government.
“I’m confident that there is great willingness in Iran to enhance political and economic relations with Iraq, and it is necessary to remove some obstacles to ease the establishment and promotion of mutual ties,”Larijani said.
“Iraq is playing a good role in the region, but it should develop a proper understanding of the other sides, so that they, too, will move within the desired framework and will not seek to make new trouble in Iraq and in the region,” the Iranian parliament speaker underlined.
Many Wouldn’t Like Iraq to be Independent
Larijani then said many countries and entities do not like Iraq to be recognized as an independent and democratic country in the region “because Iraq has resources which makes them worried.”
The top parliamentarian then touched upon efforts by Washington and Tel Aviv to secure their interests in Iraq and in the whole region.
“They are pursuing objectives the most important of which would be to prevent the presence of popular forces. This way, they intend to deal a blow to Muslims’ power. A clear example of such measures is the sanctions they recently approved against the popular forces of Hezbollah,” said Larijani.
“The second point is the breach of commitments under the Iran nuclear deal. We will remain committed to our obligations as long as they keep their side of the bargain,” he said.
“We should seek to promote relations between the two countries, so that the enemies won’t be able to tilt the situation in their own favor,” Larijani highlighted.
Iraqi People’s Unity Key to Baghdad’s Triumph
For his part, the visiting Iraqi premier thanked Iran for supporting his country in tough times.
Abadisaid what made Iraq victorious was unity among Iraqi people. He said even the issue of the Kurdistan region and the referendum on its secession from Iraq could not affect national unity.
He said Peshmerga forces wanted to stand up to the Iraqi army, but Baghdad, in a message, told them that they should ensure security in Iraq, and they took heed of that accordingly.
Under the Iraqi Constitution, said Abadi, the central government is responsible for ensuring security along the borders and inside the country.
“Iraq is a single and integrated country,” he stressed.
The Iraqi premier underscored that Baghdad is trying to restore stability to the region to set the stage for the displaced to return to their homes.
Root Causes of Terrorism
He then touched upon the root causes of terrorism in the region.
Abadi said the ISIS terrorist group was born when some problems began to emerge in Syria. According to Abadi, the militants, which enjoyed the financial and arms support of certain countries, began to occupy territories.
He added Iraq tries to bring development to the region in order to serve its own as well other countries’ interests.
Conflicts Behind Region’s Underdevelopment
Abadi said war and conflicts have, for years, caused backwardness in the region and stopped its development. Hence, he added, every effort should be made to ensure security.
