Barzani’s visit to Washington tests the Biden administration’s seriousness in protecting Iraqi Kurdistan from pressure from Iran and its allies
Barzani’s visit to Washington tests the Biden administration’s seriousness in protecting Iraqi Kurdistan from pressure from Iran and its allies
2-28-2024
The visit of Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, to the United States, based on an official invitation he received from the administration of President Joe Biden, included a clear American message regarding Washington’s renewal of its interest in the region in light of unpositive developments in Washington’s relationship with Baghdad.
Observers are seeing signs of a trend by the Biden administration towards making the region a major center of gravity for American influence in Iraq, whose government says it is working to end the mission of American forces there.
The visit came in light of the ongoing controversy over the impact of the Shiite factions close to Iran targeting the locations of US forces in Syria and Iraq on US-Iraqi relations and the possibility of the United States resorting to placing financial pressure on Baghdad. Its signs began to appear with the US Treasury imposing sanctions on many Iraqi banks and… An airline run by an Iraqi businessman accused of being close to militias and providing services to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
Observers expect that the persistence of the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia al-Sudani, which is closely linked to Shiite parties and factions close to Iran and aligned with it in the influence struggle it is waging against the United States, will not be part of the process of removing American forces from Iraq without affecting that government’s relationship with the American administration. Considering that the departure of these forces will represent a diminution of American influence in the country and a clearing of the arena for Iran. The United States can find in the Kurdistan region, which enjoys self-rule and the United States was behind its establishment, a suitable arena to maintain its influence in Iraq.
The regional leadership openly opposes the removal of American forces from Iraq, fearing further imbalance in the country to the benefit of Iran and its local allies.
In recent years, the region has been under intense pressure from the ruling Shiite forces in Iraq, which has taken several forms. Financial through the strictness of these forces in granting him his share of the federal state budget, and security through the targeting of his lands by pro-Iranian militias, a targeting in which the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has engaged more than once by directing ballistic missiles at targets within its domain, and finally judicial and legal through the intervention of the Federal Court in Regional election affairs and the law regulating them.
These pressures began to raise concerns about the stability of the region and the continuation of its experience, which has declined significantly after having remained for years an exceptional state of stability and prosperity in Iraq, which has been searching for its balance for more than two decades.
Washington’s invitation to Barzani signaled the beginning of American efforts to protect the Iraqi Kurdistan region from these pressures.
Evaluating the effectiveness of these efforts depends on the practical measures and actual US aid to the region that the visit will result in.
Observers of Iraqi affairs say that any American laxity in supporting the region will cause the visit to produce adverse results by increasing the pressure of Shiite parties and factions on it.
The United States can find in the autonomous Kurdistan region, which the United States was behind the establishment of, a suitable arena to maintain its influence in Iraq.
Barzani’s meetings with senior officials in the Biden administration witnessed American assurances to continue “supporting the steadfast Kurdistan region,” in the words of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken.
Blinken said in a comment on his account on the
He added, “The United States still supports the steadfast region as the cornerstone of our relationship with Iraq.”
Regarding the content of the Blinken-Barzani talks in Washington, the US State Department stated in a statement that the minister renewed the reminder during the meeting that “the United States has a long-term partnership with the Kurdistan region, represented by common values, common interests, common sacrifices, and common history.”
He also pointed out the Biden administration’s commitment “to continue its partnership with the Kurdistan region,” describing the region as “a model region in the Middle East,” and considering that his government constitutes a factor of stability in the region and is important to the United States of America, which believes that it is important for the Kurdistan region to be Successful and that the Kurds are united and in harmony.”
For his part, Barzani indicated that the Kurdistan region faces many challenges and that his meetings with American officials “aim to discuss these challenges and developments in Iraq and the region.”
Any American laxity in supporting the region will make the visit produce counterproductive results, increasing pressure from Shiite parties and factions on it.
Political sources said that the talks that took place between Blinken and Barzani touched on protecting the security of the Kurdistan region, resolving financial problems with the Iraqi federal government, respecting the federal system and the constitutional entity of the region, protecting the rights of its components, resuming the export of its oil, in addition to implementing the Sinjar Agreement and removing militias from the region.
The two sides also agreed to consider the decisions of the Federal Court regarding the salaries of the region’s employees and its electoral laws as troubling, and the constitutional entity of the region and the federal system must be respected.
Followers of Iraqi affairs attached great importance to Barzani’s visit to the United States, given that it came at the height of intensifying pressure on the region. Political analyst Yassin Aziz said that the region is going through an important stage and that the Prime Minister’s invitation to the United States represents a renewal of relations and a break in the coolness that has been observed in the recent period, while international politics expert Karmanj Othman considered that Prime Minister Masrour Barzani’s invitation to visit Washington is important because it comes at a difficult time. It passes through the Middle East region.
Speaking to the Kurdistan Twenty-Four news website, Othman added that the region “is important to the United States and is treated as an essential partner.”
Iraqi Kurdish political leaders believe that American support for Kurdistan is deserved, given that the intense pressure it is under from Iran’s allies in Iraq is directly related to its alliance with Washington, which makes its leaders, in the eyes of the ruling parties in Iraq, counted within the camp of loyalty to the United States.
These leaders say that the actual American support the region receives remains small compared to the promises made by the current American administration, whose policies cause great disappointment to most of Washington’s allies in the region due to the decline recorded during its reign in the United States’ commitment to protecting the stability of these allies and preserving their interests.
On the financial level, which represents one of the greatest sources of pressure on the Kurdistan region of Iraq, the United States provides only a small amount of support directed to pay part of the salaries of the Peshmerga, which is considered an ally of the American forces in confronting terrorism.
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