The political advisor to the Iraqi president and presidential spokesperson, Khaled Al-Yaqoubi, addressed the complexities surrounding the state control of weapons, affirming that this step requires mutual commitments from major powers, particularly the United States, to ensure respect for the
country's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and non-interference in its internal affairs. He explained that this file represents a fundamental responsibility for every prime minister deriving legitimacy from parliament, and it is usually included in the official government program. Regarding bilateral understandings,
Al-Yaqoubi revealed that Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi succeeded in persuading the American side to extend the deadline for handing over weapons until the end of June 2027, during talks with US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the
UN General Assembly meetings. He pointed out that Washington had previously set September 30 of last year as the final deadline for surrendering weapons, hinting at economic measures in case of non-compliance, while expressing his belief that the new timeframe
is sufficient for the government and political forces to handle this intricate file. Al-Yaqoubi attributed the difficulty of weapon consolidation to the security repercussions Iraq has faced since 2003 and its harsh experience confronting Al-Qaeda and ISIS, stating that resolving
this matter requires a long series of successive steps and cannot be settled by rapid decisions. In a related regional context, he ruled out the possibility of completely shielding Iraq from any potential confrontations between Washington and Tehran, explaining that
past conflicts exceeded conventional limits and disregarded international conventions. He noted that Iraqi airspace was breached by both sides, as American and Israeli warplanes crossed it toward Iran, while Iranian missiles passed through it in response, pointing out that Baghdad
has submitted multiple complaints to the UN Security Council to no avail. He stressed that any new escalation would place Iraq at the epicenter of events amid pressing economic conditions. Regarding mediation, Al-Yaqoubi ruled out Iraq ability at present to
play the role of mediator between Washington and Tehran due to the difficulty of the situation and the intertwining of objectives, recalling Baghdad past efforts as well as its pivotal role in the Iranian-Saudi rapprochement that preceded the Beijing agreement.
On the economic front, he indicated that oil exports are facing obstacles due to navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and changes in fee costs, explaining that this file was discussed with the Iranian side without a definitive resolution regarding
acceptance or rejection.
