Iraqi PM holds talks with US, regional leaders in New York
Shafaq News- Baghdad
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi held a run of meetings with US and regional leaders on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, including a session convened by US President Donald Trump and a separate meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, his office said.
US Engagements
Al-Zaidi joined a multilateral meeting called by Trump that brought together the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and Turkiye, alongside the United States. The talks covered regional security, the protection of global trade and supply chains, and economic development.
In his meeting with Rubio, al-Zaidi said his government would press ahead with efforts to bring all weapons in Iraq under state control, in line with the constitution and the law. Rubio voiced support for the government's steps to strengthen the state and stabilize the country, according to the Iraqi account of the meeting.
Regional and Arab Talks
With Jordan's King Abdullah II, al-Zaidi discussed energy, trade, and investment, and the two also weighed regional developments and efforts to prevent wider conflict.
His meeting with Kuwait's crown prince, Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, focused on outstanding border issues and a plan to link the two countries' power grids.
Al-Zaidi also met Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, with the talks centering on economic and trade ties, and received Nabil Fahmy, the new secretary-general of the Arab League, to discuss joint Arab action.
Other Meetings
The prime minister held separate meetings with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin, on trade and investment; Rwandan Prime Minister Justin Nsengiyumva, on economic cooperation and workforce development; and Alexander De Croo, administrator of the UN Development Programme (UNDP).
Al-Zaidi is leading Iraq's delegation to the assembly's high-level session and is due to deliver Iraq's national statement, setting out the country's positions on regional and international issues.
