Emmanuel Macron during the press conference in Baghdad, September 2, 2020. -

Gonzalo Fuentes / AP / SIPA

French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday affirmed in Baghdad his support for Iraq's “sovereignty” in the face of “foreign interference” which is weakening this country.

Coming from Beirut, the Head of State also assured that France would continue "to act alongside" Iraq in the fight against the jihadists, which "is not over even if we have defeated the caliphate" of the Islamic State (IS) group in 2017.

"Iraq has been going through a time of challenge for several years, marked by war and terrorism", declared Emmanuel Macron at the beginning of his visit, the first to this country since his election in 2017. "You have a transition to lead ", And France wishes" fully "to support it, he added after an interview with President Barham Saleh.

Allow Iraq to regain its sovereignty

The French president was only due to spend a few hours in Baghdad, the time to meet the main political leaders, including the new Prime Minister Moustafa al-Kazimi.

He was to discuss with them the launch, "in conjunction with the United Nations, of an initiative to support a process of sovereignty" of Iraq, the outlines of which are still unclear.

Baghdad is faced with "the challenge of multiple external interference, whether it is several years old or more recent," said the French president, without citing any country name.

"We do not want to be a space of confrontation, but of stability and moderation", said Prime Minister Kazimi, hoping that France and Europe play a more important role "for the restoration of stability in the region. ".

In vice

Iraq has been trapped for years between its two most influential partners, Washington and Tehran, a position that has become even more difficult to maintain from 2018 with the campaign of "maximum pressure" exerted by the United States. of Donald Trump against Iran.

In the spring, Paris and its European partners called for "de-escalation" as tensions rose sharply in reaction to the death of a powerful Iranian general, Qassem Soleïmani, and his Iraqi lieutenant in an American drone strike in Baghdad .

Tehran responded with strikes against US troops in western Iraq.

In recent years, the United States has gradually withdrawn from the country.

And President Donald Trump reaffirmed on August 21 his desire to withdraw US troops from Iraq, but without specifying a timetable.

Some 5,000 American soldiers and diplomats are still deployed there.

The big Iranian neighbor has on Iraqi soil the crucial support of Hachd al-Chaabi, a coalition of paramilitaries integrated into the State and which demands in Parliament the expulsion of American troops.

The relationship between Baghdad and Tehran must be "state to state and not through militias," Prime Minister Kazimi recently declared.

For Emmanuel Macron, the international community has "an interest" in supporting the "project" of the Iraqi government to carry out reforms and diversify its economy in order to respond to the powerful popular protest movement.

The second largest producer of OPEC, Iraq has been strongly affected by the fall in oil prices and the coronavirus pandemic has further aggravated the difficulties.

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