Iraqi official: unprecedented measures to prevent targeting of neighboring countries

An Iraqi official said that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaydi has taken measures "that are the first of their kind" to pursue those who target neighboring countries, reiterating refusal to allow Iraq to be a launchpad for attacks on neighboring states.

Member of the Iraqi Parliament Shaker al-Tamimi said that "the prime minister's steps are good and are moving in the right direction with regard to international and regional relations that serve Iraq, as well as all the security measures the prime minister is taking at present," according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).

He added: "We will not accept that Iraq be dragged into this war... The government must manage a process of balance in the region with neighboring countries and with all countries, and there must be good relations," stressing the necessity that "Iraq be a link between the countries in the region."

"An open foreign policy"

Those remarks came after the Iraqi prime minister earlier today called for calming the situation in the region and contributing to resolving its crises, saying that Iraq pursues an open foreign policy based on mutual respect and shared interests.

Al-Zaydi also said that "Iraq is currently facing exceptional economic challenges, in light of the repercussions of the war in the region and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz," during his reception of an elite group of heads of research and think centers in the country.

These remarks come as the dossier of concentrating weapons in the hands of the state in Iraq has entered a more sensitive phase, amid Iranian pressure linked to the future of the weapons of factions close to Tehran, coinciding with negotiations between the government and those factions over mechanisms for handing over weapons and the conditions for implementing the process.