Middle East and European leaders met in Jordan on Tuesday for a convention on strengthening security and stability in Iraq.
The assembly included high-level officials from its regional rivals, Saudi Arabia and Iran, as well as leaders from France, Iraq, Turkey, Egypt, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman and the European Union. The countries said the goal was to show “support for Iraq, its sovereignty, security and stability, as well as its political process, economic progress and progress and reconstruction efforts. “
Iraq’s stability and security have been shaken for decades by internal and external conflicts. The 2003 U. S. -led invasion sparked years of intense violence and sectarian strife, the creation of the Islamic State extremist organization and the empowerment of Iranian-backed political factions and militias.
More recently, the country has been paralyzed through a political stalemate, with the main dividing line between Iran’s allies and opponents. Recently, Baghdad has tried to play the role of mediator between Iran and Saudi Arabia. But a series of talks between the two in Iraq collapsed and Tehran accused the kingdom of inciting protests in Iran.
Tuesday’s assembly was a follow-up to the Baghdad Conference on Cooperation and Partnership convened in Iraq last year with the co-sponsorship of France. Paris has played an increasingly active role in the region in recent years, with President Emmanuel Macron also making an attempt to interfere in Lebanon’s political crisis.
Speaking at Tuesday’s conference, Macron said France was committed to stability in the region, which he said is dealing with “deadlocks, divisions, foreign interference and security issues” in order to sell peace and security in the wider Mediterranean basin.
“Iraq is probably, given the last few decades, one of the main victims of regional destabilization,” Macron said. “We want to be able to. . . overcome the divisions of the moment. “
Jordan’s King Abdullah II said in his opening remarks that the assembly “comes at a time when the region is facing political and security crises,” such as threats to food, water, fitness and energy security and the effects of climate change.
Jordan has faced domestic unrest in recent days, after truckers went on strike to protest high fuel costs and a policeman was killed in clashes with protesters last week. Homicide left 3 officials and the suspect dead.
No direct meetings between Iranian and Saudi officials were planned at the conference, but foreign ministers of the two countries spoke at the opening session.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Iran’s “policy is to wage war and work to repair security and stability” and that the country is “ready to expand relations with all countries in the region, adding friendly countries on Iran’s southern coast. “Gulf.
He also affirmed Iran’s willingness to return to a foreign agreement on its nuclear program “as long as red lines are crossed. “
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan said the kingdom “affirms its general rejection of any aggression on the territory of Iraq,” an obvious blow against Iran, which recently introduced airstrikes against Iranian Kurdish dissident teams in northern Iraq.
Ahmed Aboul Gheit, head of the Arab League, called for Baghdad to be excluded from regional rivalries and said “Iraq is not a stage for clashes or settling scores. “
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Associated Press editors Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Abby Sewell in Beirut contributed to this report.
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