Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi quietly travelled to Tehran last Friday in the latest bid by a country in the region to prevent the US-Iran conflict from reigniting, it was revealed on Monday.
Mr Al Zaidi’s mission was aimed at “reducing tension and preventing escalation”, Iraq’s ambassador to Tehran, Yasir Abdul Zahra Al Hajjaj, was quoted as saying by state media.
A government official told The National the visit had been requested by US President Donald Trump and “intended to open a channel for de-escalation and prevent a slide towards war”.
The visit comes as part of a diplomatic
The visit comes as part of a “diplomatic move to defuse the growing confrontation” between Iran and the US, and to “shield Iraq from being drawn into a wider regional conflict”, the official added. He did not provide more details.
Mr Al Zaidi made a brief visit to Tehran on Friday and met Iran’s parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Fars News Agency reported on Monday.
An informedrts to help end the conflict between Iran and the US
Mr Ghalibaf thanked the Iraqi side for its efforts and outlined Iran’s “two-day proposal,” saying negotiations could move forwards only if the US respected Iran’s rights under the proposal, the
Baghdad has long positioned itself as a mediator
Baghdad has long positioned itself as a mediator between Tehran and Washington, drawing on its close ties to both sides and its own interest in avoiding the ramifications on its territory of another war.
Iran is studying proposals related to its nuclear activities that were presented by chief mediator Qatar, one diplomat told Bloomberg. They said Iran was showing a willingness to discuss issues related to its atomic programme that were previously off the table.
Esmaeil Baghaei, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, offered a hint of conciliation on Monday by saying inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency had been allowed to visit Iran’s only nuclear plant.
The IAEA has not been allowed to visit
But the IAEA has not been allowed to visit nuclear sites damaged in earlier US and Israeli strikes, leaving Iran’s potential to make a nuclear weapon uncertain. Mr Baghaei also ruled out any agreement for enriched nuclear material to be removed from Iran.
Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian said elusive supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has ordered officials to end the status quo of “neither war nor peace” with the US.
Turkey has also weighed in to call for calm. Ankara does not want to see a new wave of attacks against Iran, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, adding that he conveyed his concerns to US President Donald Trump in a recent phone call.
“We emphasise at every opportunity that it is possible to resolve these issues through dialogue and diplomacy. Unfortunately, we see a negative shift once again. We are doing our utmost to prevent this,” Mr Erdogan told reporters.
