Former US diplomat: Iraq part of Trump’s maximum pressure policy on Iran
Former US diplomat: Iraq part of Trump’s maximum pressure policy on Iran
2025-02-27
Shafaq News/ Former US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker said on Thursday that US President Donald Trump included Iraq as part of the maximum pressure policy he imposed on Iran.
This came during his hosting on the sidelines of the second day of the Erbil Forum in its third edition, organized by the Rudaw Center for Studies.
Schenker said, “If we look at the policy of Washington, Congress and the US administration towards the Kurdistan Region, we find that this will benefit the region in several ways, including supporting the region, as well as keeping US soldiers in Iraqi Kurdistan,” adding that “the $20 million that the United States used to give annually to the Peshmerga forces will continue.”
Regarding the general situation in Iraq and the Trump administration’s position on it, the former US diplomat said: “I don’t think Trump is thinking much about Iraq, but he is taking it as part of the maximum pressure campaign that Trump is applying on Iran.”
In early February 2025, US President Donald Trump signed a presidential memorandum to restore the policy of maximum pressure on the Iranian government, with the aim of blocking Tehran’s path to obtaining a nuclear weapon and confronting its destabilizing influence abroad, according to what the White House announced at the time.
While signing the memorandum, Trump described the resolution as very tough on Iran, but expressed his hope that it would not need to be used often.
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