Foreign Minister: Iraq is committed to the Arab league decisions

Shafaq News / Iraq’s Foreign Minister, Fouad Hussein confirmed, on Tuesday, that Iraq's neighbors should deal with it as an independent state and stressed the pursuit of equal relations with others, noting that Iraq is committed to Arab League decisions regarding relations with Israel and the Palestinian issue.

Hussein said in an interview with "France 24" channel -followed by Shafaq News agency-, in response to a question about his visit to Paris and the European tour that "strengthening bilateral relations and discussing many files were at the core of the European visit." Noting that Hussein met in Brussels with the Secretary-General of NATO and officials in the European Parliament, and they discussed the ways to support Iraq, especially in the security and economic fields.

He said, "We asked officials to remove Iraq from State Sponsors of Terrorism list since Iraq is a victim of terrorism, and it was agreed with the Central Bank of Iraq to remove our country from the list," noting that "ISIS is a global threat that must be fought in cooperation among regional countries and all countries of the world."

With regard to the relationship with Turkey and the Turkish military operations in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, the Iraqi Foreign Minister explained, "We are not going to escalate with Turkey, as it is an important neighbor of Iraq, and it entered Iraq and Kurdistan saying for fighting the PKK, but the military operations and bombing extend to reach civilians and villages in Iraq, in addition to killing senior officers in the Iraqi border guards."

He added, "We have moved in the Arab, international and European area to stop these operations, but also, in a parallel, we asked the Turkish side for dialogue to solve the issue by other means between the two countries."

Hussein stressed that "there are regional interference in the Iraqi situation from other countries, political and military interventions, and this is not acceptable because Iraq is a sovereign state, and we ask the neighbors to deal with us as an independent state, we are not a dependent state, and our decisions should be taken by Iraqis themselves."

Regarding relations with Washington, Hussein explained, "We started the strategic dialogue with USA; the first round was in Baghdad and the second round in Washington, and within the strategic dialogue and the joint statement, there will be an agreement in this regard on the status of the military forces," noting that "United States have begun to withdraw 1,500 soldiers and There are still 3,500 soldiers," and he stressed that relations with the United States will be "in another framework."

Regarding dealing with Israel, or establishing a relationship with it, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said, “We are committed to the decisions of the Arab summit, whether the 2002 summit in Beirut or the Arab summit in Baghdad 2012, so we are moving with the Arab countries, and our decisions are purely Iraqi based on the decisions of the Iraqi parliament and the government. In this context, we also abide by the decisions of the Arab summits. "

On the elections, the uncontrolled weapons and the position of the reference, Hussain continued, "The reference’s conversation with the representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations was clear about supporting the transparent conduct of elections and preparing for them, and supporting the government in conducting them."

Regarding state control over weapons, the Iraqi foreign minister stressed that "weapons must be within the framework of the law and the constitution, and under the control of the government," noting that "the political atmosphere in the country is ready for this government and future governments to take important steps in this direction."