Shafaq News- Erbil

The United States had decided to bomb Iraq and impose a blockade, but Baghdad averted the threat by building economic partnerships with Washington, Iraqi National Security Adviser Qasim Al-Aboudi said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the Middle East Research Institute's MERI Forum 2026 in Erbil, Al-Aboudi said Iraq had been isolated or nearly isolated before Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi took office. During a visit to the US with the premier, the Iraqi delegation also encountered rhetoric portraying Iraq as an enemy, he added.

Baghdad gradually transformed the hostility into economic cooperation, signing energy contracts worth $1 trillion with the US, he said, arguing that Iraq should maintain relations with all sides and that American interests in the country should be economic rather than military.

In July, Iraqi Oil Minister Basim Mohammed valued energy agreements signed between the Oil Ministry and US companies during Al-Zaidi’s visit at about $200 billion.

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