Iran, Iraq agree to draft strategic cooperation document

By Syed Zafar Mehdi

TEHRAN (AA) – Iran and Iraq have agreed to draft a strategic cooperation document following consultations between the two sides during a visit by the Iranian deputy foreign minister to Baghdad.

Ali Bagheri Kani, Iran's deputy foreign minister for political affairs, led a high-level delegation to Iraq this week and held a series of meetings with senior Iraqi officials.

The agreement was reached between Bagheri and his Iraqi counterpart Mohammad Hussein Bahr AlUloom.

The discussions were held as part of the fifth meeting of the joint political committee of Iran and Iraq.

Among others, the Bagheri-led delegation held talks with Iraq's President Abdul Latif Rashid, Prime Minister Muhammed Shia al-Sudani, Iraqi National Security Advisor Mohsen Al-Mandalawi and former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, his office said.

In his meeting with the Iraqi prime minister on Wednesday, Bagheri stressed the importance of "strengthening and institutionalizing" bilateral ties, Iran's state media said.

He further called for "continuing the bilateral cooperation and expanding it to regional level" with a focus on "neutralizing the destabilizing plans of the enemies."

"Iraq and Iran have an outstanding history of joint cooperation. The two countries play a pivotal role in the region in terms of establishing security and stability," the senior Iranian diplomat was quoted as saying in his meeting with Iraq's president.

Rashid, who assumed office in October last year, made his first official visit to Tehran in April and held talks with top Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Ebrahim Raisi.

Bagheri's visit to Baghdad came less than a week after Yahya Ale Eshaq, head of the Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber of Commerce, said $10 billion worth of Iranian frozen funds in Iraq will be deposited to the Trade Bank of Iraq and used to purchase goods that are exempted from US sanctions.

Eshaq said there are "no obstacles or problems" in financial exchanges between the two countries, calling the current phase a "strategic opportunity."

Despite its large oil and gas reserves, the Arab country remains heavily dependent on Iran for its energy needs, with Tehran providing a third of Baghdad's gas and electricity supplies.