Tishwash: Trump: We are leaving Iraq with a great prime minister there.
The US President announced Donald Trump On Wednesday, the international coalition announced the end of its military presence in Iraq.
He said Trump In a statement followed Alsumaria News”I am pleased to announce that the last American troops are leaving.”Iraq Today,” he said, adding, “We are leaving Iraq with a great prime minister there.”
He added that “the departure of coalition forces and their equipment from Erbil Air Base This represents the end of a military presence that began years ago,” he noted, adding, “I had the choice to stay in Iraq or leave, and I decided that the time had come for Americans to return home.”
He continued, “I set a clear mission, gave our leaders the tools to complete it, and refused to allow a temporary presence to become permanent,” noting that “this is a great day for America, a victory for the United States and Iraq, and a decisive victory over the organization.”ISIS He confirmed that “
the withdrawal of forces and equipment from Erbil It is carried out in an organized manner, unlike the withdrawal process from Afghanistan” link
Tishwash: Coordination framework: Ending the occupation is a national achievement, but sovereignty is incomplete without liberating the economy.
Ali al-Zubaidi, a member of the Coordination Framework, affirmed on Wednesday that the evacuation of American forces and the end of their military presence represents a national achievement and a long-overdue entitlement, given the record of catastrophic crimes and violations committed by the occupation army since 2003.
He stressed that the restoration of national sovereignty will remain incomplete unless the withdrawal is accompanied by ending the financial dependence on American hegemony and regaining full control over Iraqi airspace.
Al-Zubaidi told Al-Maalouma News Agency that “the American presence was and still is the root cause and basis for the crises and setbacks that have plagued Iraq throughout the past two decades,” explaining that “Washington possesses a military destruction machine capable of overthrowing regimes by brute force, but it has proven a resounding failure and complete inability to manage the state, which has plunged the country into systematic chaos and enabled the occupation to exploit Iraqi airspace, along with the airspace of neighboring countries, to carry out repeated attacks against Iran in flagrant violation of international laws.”
He added that “the American military withdrawal is an urgent and deserved step, but it requires the government to complete the pillars of sovereignty by liberating the economic and financial decision from the restrictions and hegemony of the American Federal Reserve,” noting that “talk of the return of sectarian conflict or the outbreak of a civil war after the departure of the occupier is nothing but misleading promotion and a losing bet that is refuted by the reality of the cohesion and coexistence of the established mujahideen and intermarriage among all segments of the Iraqi people, and that any tensions that may arise are limited to narrow political squabbles and conflicts only.”
Earlier, Mu’in al-Kadhim, a member of the Coordination Framework and former MP, affirmed that the Islamic Resistance in Iraq played the largest and most fundamental role in forcing the American occupation forces to leave Iraqi territory, emphasizing the rejection of any attempts to maintain foreign forces under any name or new pretext. link
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Tishwash: Foreign Minister: The plan to restrict weapons will be presented in the coming days.
Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said that the government’s plan to restrict weapons will include specific timelines for implementation, noting that the deadline for its completion will be in June of next year.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ media office stated in a statement that “the Atlantic Council in the American capital, Washington, hosted on Wednesday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Fuad Hussein, in a dialogue session entitled ‘Iraq after September 30,’ moderated by Victoria Taylor, Director of the Iraq Initiative and the Syria Project at the Council.”
He added that “the dialogue addressed the latest political and security developments in Iraq and the region, the prospects for Iraqi-American relations, the future of security cooperation, and efforts to combat the ISIS terrorist organization.”
He continued: “He also discussed Iraq’s position on regional conflicts, the impact of sanctions imposed on Iran on Iraq and its economic relations, as well as the Iraqi government’s efforts to restrict weapons to the state and to deal with the issue of armed factions.”
In this context, the minister explained, according to the statement, that “the Iraqi government has prepared a draft plan to restrict weapons to the state, which is scheduled to be presented in the coming days, and will include specific timeframes for its implementation,” noting that “the Prime Minister announced that the final date for completing the plan will be in June of next year.”
He added that “the dialogue also touched on border security and developments in Syria and their repercussions on Iraqi national security, in addition to discussing opportunities to strengthen economic relations between Iraq and the United States, and encouraging American companies to invest in Iraq, which would contribute to expanding the prospects for economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. link
Nine ministerial portfolios are up for grabs… Political moves to resolve the agency issue in Baghdad
Next week will witness intense political activity among political forces to resolve the issue of nine ministerial portfolios that are still being run by acting ministers in the government of Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, most notably the Ministries of Interior and Defense.
These anticipated moves come after multiple meetings held by the coordination framework over the past two weeks, which resulted in tangible progress and understandings to overcome obstacles and develop a final roadmap, in preparation for setting a date for a special session of the House of Representatives to vote on the new candidates.
Nine ministerial portfolios await resolution
In this context, Coordination Framework member Uday Abdul Hadi revealed in a press statement on Wednesday that next week will witness action to resolve the issue of nine ministerial portfolios in Prime Minister Ali al-Zidi’s government that are still being run by acting ministers, including two security ministries.
Abdul-Hadi explained that “the past two weeks witnessed multiple meetings within the coordination framework and with the rest of the political forces, in order to develop a roadmap to resolve the issue of candidates for nine ministerial portfolios, especially the security ministries, referring to the Ministries of Interior and Defense.”
“Tangible progress”
He pointed out that “there is tangible progress, and therefore next week will witness greater and broader activity in terms of meetings and consultations, in order to determine the roadmap that is being agreed upon, leading to setting a date for holding a session of the House of Representatives to vote on the candidates for the nine portfolios.
Abdul-Hadi added that “some complications have been agreed upon to be overcome, and therefore next week will be very important, and we expect progress to be made towards the possibility of agreeing on a date for a session of the House of Representatives.” link
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Tishwash: “One basket” is Al-Zaydi’s way to fill the vacancies: a discussion with Al-Maliki to resolve the issue
An informed government source revealed a proposed mechanism to complete the government cabinet in the event that political agreement cannot be reached on candidates for the vacant ministries or their distribution among the political forces, coinciding with a visit by the head of the State of Law Coalition, Nouri al-Maliki, to Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to discuss the same issue.
The source was briefed on the details of the inability to finalize the candidates for the vacant ministries, including the security ministries (Interior and Defense), and the continued state of disagreement between the political forces and leaders.
According to him, this will push towards passing the candidates according to the “single basket” mechanism, to complete the government cabinet headed by Ali al-Zidi, who was authorized by most of the political forces to choose whomever he sees fit for the vacant ministries.
The mechanism will also include the positions of deputy prime ministers, in order to avoid a political veto, given that the Kurdish forces have not yet agreed on who should hold the position of deputy prime minister, whether it belongs to the Kurdistan Democratic Party or the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, according to the source.
In a related context, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi received Nouri al-Maliki, head of the State of Law Coalition, and discussed with him the importance of continuing understandings and dialogues between national political forces to complete the formation of the government, as well as supporting the government’s efforts in combating corruption, achieving reforms, and consolidating stability.
In addition, the government source pointed out that “the coordination framework, after the conclusion of the celebrations marking the withdrawal of US forces from the entire country, will appoint a delegation to visit the Kurdistan Region to decide on the identity of the second deputy prime minister, in addition to the candidates for the ministries that fall within the Kurdish share in the federal government.
According to the source, the government cabinet will be completed after the conclusion of the Sovereignty Day ceremonies and events, noting that a televised speech by the Prime Minister on behalf of Iraq will be broadcast on this occasion, and this matter was discussed in previous meetings of the coordination framework.
On May 14, the Iraqi parliament voted to approve Ali al-Zaidi’s government and its ministerial program, including 14 ministers. Voting on the remaining nine ministries was postponed until further notice due to ongoing political disagreements over the distribution of portfolios, amid reports of international warnings against including armed factions in the new cabinet.
Since then, the coordination framework has authorized Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to make contacts with the heads of the political blocs and entities participating in the government, whose candidates for the vacant ministries have not yet been decided up to the time of writing this report. link
