Al-Sudani: Iraq will not allow anti-Tehran groups to jeopardize Iran from its territory

Shafaq News/ Iraq will not allow anti-Tehran groups to use its land to jeopardize neighboring Iran's security, Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-sudani said in a joint press conference with the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, in Tehran on Tuesday.

Earlier this morning, al-Sudani arrived in the Iranian capital on the top of a high-level political and economic delegation on his first visit to a non-Arab country since he took over as the premier of Iraq.

"We are in Tehran to discuss the bilateral ties between the two countries in the economic, political, and security fields," he said, "we will also discuss the developments in the region and the international situation."

"Of course, our visit aims to sustain the historic ties between Iran and Iraq, and all the commonalities they share at all levels," he continued, "coordination and joint work is a must."

The prime minister praised the Iranian support for Iraq since 2003 and during the battle with ISIS.

"This support was demonstrated in big situations. Iranian brothers offered their lives along with their Iraqi brothers in the battle of right and wrong," he said.

"This spurs us to cope with the challenges, extremism, and drugs that jeopardize the people of the region," the prime minister continued, "these meetings are crucial to providing a solid base to push toward energizing the ties in all fields."

Al-Sudani said that the economy is a priority for the Iraqi government. "We believe this visit will be a cornerstone in pushing forward the economy, not only in the region but the entire world."

The prime minister expressed gratitude for Iran's sustained gas supplies. "We ensured they will continue until Iraq completes its projects in this aspect."

"During this visit, we will also discuss projects on transferring crude oil and gas in accordance with previous memoranda of understanding," he continued.

The meetings, according to al-Sudani, touched upon security cooperation.

"The security of the two countries is an indivisible unit. It is, indeed, a part of the region's security," he continued.

"The Iraqi government is committed to implementing the constitution and not allowing any groups or parties to use the Iraqi territory to harm or tamper with Iran's security," he continued, "this is Iraq's policy."

"Our foreign policy seeks balanced ties with friendly countries on the basis of mutual respect," he said.

"We will discuss security problems and establish a formula for field work and cooperation to avoid escalations. We believe dialogue is an optimal method," he concluded.