The Biden administration is reeling in Iraq. And you're talking about four priorities.

The Biden administration is reeling in Iraq. And you're talking about four priorities.


I'm six hours ago.
Rustam Mahmoud - Erbil - Sky News Arabia

U.S. Soldiers in Iraq - Archives
U.S. Soldiers in Iraq - Archives
At a quarterly seminar organized by the Washington-based U.S. Institute for Peace, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Matthew Toller said the administration of new President Joe Biden has four priorities in Mesopotamia, and observers see difficult obstacles in the way.

Matthew said priorities for the foreseeable future include fighting ISIS, helping the Iraqi government fight corruption and facing difficult economic conditions, as well as the challenges of the Coronavirus and the climate change crisis.

Radical change

Iraqi observers of the U.S. ambassador's remarks noted a radical change in u.S. officials' rhetoric toward Iraq, on two levels, researcher Khader Abdul Rahman told Sky News Arabic.

"The new U.S. administration, through its ambassador's statement, suggests that its interest in Iraq goes beyond the issue of fighting terrorism and the traditional security partnership between the two governments, so that the United States can contribute to the issue of the diary of the Iraqi citizen, particularly in the face of the Corona virus and corruption in state institutions," he said.

"There is also a change in the quality of U.S. discourse, through the introduction of proposals and interests that are contrary to previous administration options, such as climate change and environmental issues, which are totally neglected by the Iraqi government."

No strategic explanations 

The U.S. diplomat's remarks came nearly two months after the new U.S. administration took office in Washington, and during this short period of time it has not released any explanations or data outlining its overall strategy in Iraq, although it is a hot spot for the United States.

In addition to being engaged in the face of remnants of terrorist organizations entrenched in the desert and central mountainous areas of the country, the United States is under periodic rocket attacks by pro-Iranian Popular Mobilization militias.

The U.S. ambassador has made it clear that his country is still on track for its traditional strategic priorities, noting that U.S. administrations change periodically every four or eight years, but the challenges to U.S. national interests and security persist.

Each department deals with constants according to a different vision and method of dealing. Recalling that Iraq, through this bilateralism, has long remained a vital country for which U.S. interest has not changed.

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Low ceiling of expectations

Iraqi Kurdish researcher and civil activist Shafan Mohammed Saleh, who lives in the United States, played down the possibility that the United States could easily achieve its stated ambitions through this strategy.

He said the upcoming parliamentary elections, which are due to take place in October, will determine the ability of the states to continue in Iraq in the current form.

"U.S. decision makers know that the counter-terrorism issue across the region, particularly in Iraq, needs a preliminary strategic decision on the mechanism by which this administration will deal with the whole iran file. "Terrorism is mainly the source of fragmentation of states and the spread of chaos in societies and institutions, which Iran contributes effectively and institutionally, and without a radical decision on the mechanism for dealing with Iran, nothing can be achieved in the fight against terrorism, except for open confrontation without horizons."

"Other issues that the Administration has added to its priorities, such as confronting corruption and climate change, can only help the Iraqi government with some experts and mentors, but the essence of these issues in Iraq is political, related to the structure of the ruling elite, which sees the Iraqi state and the sources of public wealth as its own source, political organizations and military arms."

He said the Administration of President Joe Biden would not be able to implement any practical steps in that direction, as evidenced by the fact that the strategic agreement between the two countries was nearly broken, although it promised a strategic development shift in Iraq with the help of the United States.

The U.S. ambassador focused on the importance of maintaining the U.S. presence in Iraq and "continuing to maintain this U.S. presence, as long as necessary to help the Iraqi government prevent the return of ISIS and terrorists to threaten the Iraqi people and regional security."

Difficulties for Washington

But an Iraqi Kurdish political source told Sky News Arabic that the administration's difficulties in that direction are worsening.

"The missile attacks were facing U.S. civilian bases and interests in Baghdad and the southern cities of the country, but they are pursuing this U.S. presence even in the Kurdistan region," the source said. "There is an internal Iraqi military political party, which is strongly associated with a clearregional party."

He said that this party, which means Iran, "seeks to remove the United States from the Iraqi file absolutely, in order to eliminate any possibility of political or military competition for what it is planning for Iraq strategically, to discuss that Iraq becomes a full regional affiliate, and through Iraq can penetrate all the files and affairs of the region."
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