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Agreements in Tehran
Iran said it expects to conclude a series of agreements and memorandums of understanding during Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Zaidi’s upcoming Tehran visit, with Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei describing the trip as a chance to expand economic, security, political, and border cooperation.
“Iraqi Prime Minister Ali az-Zeidi will visit Tehran, where a number of bilateral cooperation agreements are expected to be signed”
Baqaei said the visit is “a bilateral visit” and emphasized the “strategic importance of relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraq,” adding that both sides intend to formalize cooperation through agreements and memorandums of understanding scheduled to be signed during the trip.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said discussions are expected to span economic and commercial cooperation, coordination on security matters, and efforts to strengthen border management.
Baqaei also framed Iran’s approach toward Iraq’s stability, sovereignty and development as support while “fully respecting the country’s internal political dynamics,” and he contrasted it with what he described as “the Americans” pursuing “interference, intimidation, and coercion” toward regional countries including Iraq.
US-Iraq deal and Iran
Arab News reported that Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi praised the outcome of his Washington visit and wrote on X that “Our government remains determined to translate the strategic economic partnership between the two friendly countries into reality,” citing the agreements and memorandums of understanding signed during the visit.
The same report said Iran officially distanced itself from critical remarks by Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, and it quoted Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi telling Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein that bilateral ties should not be affected by “personal and unofficial” remarks.
Arab News also said Iraq and the United States signed 48 agreements during the visit that require parliamentary approval, while memorandums of understanding can take effect without ratification.
It added that opponents of the visit, particularly Iran-aligned armed factions, viewed the outcome with suspicion and feared implementing deals could elevate Baghdad’s relationship with Washington while diminishing cooperation with Tehran, especially after an agreement between Iraq’s central bank and the US Treasury aimed at curbing the smuggling of funds to Iran.
Regional tour after Tehran
Iraqi News said the Iraqi Foreign Ministry stated that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi will visit Iran at the end of this week to sign multiple memoranda of understanding on bilateral cooperation, and it reported that Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Legal Affairs Mohammed Bahr al-Uloom and Iranian Ambassador to Iraq Mohammad al-Sadegh discussed the agenda and preparations in Baghdad.
The report said the Tehran visit comes immediately after al-Zaidi’s first official foreign trip to the United States, where he signed 48 commercial agreements with American companies after meeting with President Donald Trump.
Shafaq News said the Foreign Ministry confirmed that al-Zaidi will visit Tehran next week for talks on bilateral relations and the signing of several memorandums of understanding covering areas of cooperation, and it described the Tehran stop as followed by a regional tour covering Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, and Syria.
In Doha News, Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi discussed bilateral cooperation and called for diplomacy and implementation of the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding to bolster regional stability, with the meeting held at Lusail Palace on Sunday and attended by Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein and other senior officials.
