Now, it is mostly defeated. Iran, as a key ally of both Iraq and Syria, uses them to move weapons to Lebanon, threatening Israel. Al-Sudani’s visit is important because it can play into Iran’s hands. On the other side of the coin, Iraq signed a new energy deal and is in the midst of trying to get around sanctions on Iran to conduct more trade, and it helped broker the Iran-Saudi deal.
The visit to Syria is being monitored closely in Lebanon and across the region as well. Arab News, in the Gulf, reported that the Iraqi leader was on his first visit since 2011, with the goal of bolstering economic ties and establishing policies for the border area of Al-Qaim and Albukamal, a strategic crossing that has been used by Iranian-backed militias and extremist groups.
“Iraq and Syria, which have close economic ties, maintained relations throughout Syria’s civil war even as other Arab states withdrew their ambassadors and closed their embassies in Syria,” Arab News noted.
The drug trade from Syria is also an important factor here; the report notes that Baghdad and Tehran are both trying to crack down on the trade of Captagon. Pro-Iranian media Al-Mayadeen reported on the meeting as well, as did Syrian state media, which praised READ MORE
