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White House meeting
President Donald Trump met Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi at the White House in Washington, DC, pledging to deepen economic ties and boost Iraq’s oil output.
Trump endorsed al-Zaidi after publicly opposing former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for the premiership, and the meeting came after al-Zaidi was installed as prime minister-designate in April.
Al-Zaidi told reporters that the visit was the beginning of an “economic partnership,” while Trump said “Iraq has tremendous potential because of their oil.”
The issue of Iran loomed large in the discussions, with Iraq under pressure to disarm a network of Iran-backed militias operating in the country.
A Trump administration official said the U.S. will make “informed” decisions based on Iraq’s efforts to disarm Iranian-backed militias inside its borders.
Disarmament deadline
Both leaders tied the future of U.S. forces in Iraq to a disarmament timeline, with Al-Zaidi and Trump saying remaining U.S. forces in Iraq, believed to number less than 2,000, would completely withdraw by September 30.
Al-Zaidi said, “On September 30th, American forces will leave, and American companies will enter,” and he added, “After 30 September, we will not allow any entity to bear arms outside the state.”
The disarmament push is also framed as a sovereignty and security test, with the AP reporting that Iraq has been under pressure to disarm Iran-backed militias and that non-state armed groups were given until the end of September to disarm.
Renad Mansour of the Chatham House think tank said he expects “the U.S. will put significant pressure on al-Zaidi” to move ahead with disarmament during the Washington visit.
Mansour warned that “if the Iraqi government starts going after these groups, they will also go after the government,” describing a scenario the Iraqi government is apprehensive about.
Oil deals and fallout
The White House meeting also centered on investment and energy deals, with Trump saying “We’re going to be doing a lot of deals,” and Al-Zaidi seeking to strengthen economic and development partnerships.
Two Iraqi officials said an agreement is slated to be signed Friday between Iraq, U.S. companies Chevron and TI Capital, and Qatar’s UCC for construction of an oil pipeline.
The pipeline plan is described as linking Basra to Haditha and extending to ports in Turkey and Syria, with Deutsche Welle reporting a “2 million-barrel-per-day oil pipeline.”
Al-Zaidi also pressed for OPEC terms, telling reporters he wants a “fair share” for Iraq, while the National reported Iraq’s production quota at 4.378 million barrels a day.
The stakes extend beyond economics to the disarmament deadline, because Al-Zaidi said there will be no justification for armed groups’ existence after Sept. 30 and the Islamic Resistance in Iraq said it would reject any outcomes of the visit.
