Shafaq News – Baghdad (Updated Sept. 29 at 15:40)

Iraq lacks full control over its airspace due to the absence of modern defense systems and US objections to buying them from Russia or China, a parliamentary official said on Sunday.

Mohammed al-Shammari, a member of Parliament’s Security and Defense Committee, told Shafaq News that Washington’s hold over Iraqi funds at the Federal Reserve prevents Baghdad from using them to finance arms deals with Moscow or Beijing.

Iraq, he added, has instead signed contracts with South Korea and France for advanced air defense systems, including a $2.8B deal with Seoul for Cheongung II surface-to-air missiles, with first deliveries expected in 2026.

Al-Shammari also noted that the activities of Iraqi armed groups remain coordinated with Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to prevent escalation.

His comments followed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to the UN General Assembly on September 26, where he warned that leaders of Iraq’s Iran-aligned factions would be targeted if they attacked. Baghdad rejected the threat as a violation of sovereignty, while the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a coalition of mostly Shiite paramilitaries, declared readiness to confront “any Israeli assault.”