US envoy coming to Baghdad amid armed factions debate
Shafaq News – Baghdad
US Envoy to Iraq Mark Savaya is expected to visit Baghdad in the coming days to discuss the future of bilateral ties, a senior Iraqi government source said on Sunday.
The source told Shafaq News that Savaya will meet senior Iraqi officials and political leaders to review Iraq’s political and security outlook, economic cooperation, and the framework governing relations after the planned drawdown of the US-led Global Coalition. Talks are expected to focus on timelines for the withdrawal of US forces, future security cooperation, and plans for training and equipping Iraqi forces.
The visit is also intended to set parameters for what the source described as a new phase of partnership, following years dominated by conflict management and crisis diplomacy.
The timing coincides with a sharp internal debate over weapons outside state control. In the past 24 hours, several Iran-aligned factions including Kataib Imam Ali, Asaib Ahl Al-Haq, Ansar Allah Al-Awfiya, and Kataib Sayyid Al-Shuhada said they were prepared to support confining arms to the state. Supreme Judicial Council head Faiq Zidan said those groups had responded positively to advice urging cooperation with state institutions and a shift toward political activity once armed action is no longer justified.
Other factions rejected that path. Kataib Hezbollah said it would not disarm, arguing that state sovereignty and security must first be secured through the withdrawal of US, NATO, and Turkish forces, and describing armed resistance as a legitimate right.
Savaya was appointed in October as US President Donald Trump’s envoy to Baghdad, the third to hold the post since 2003. His recent public comments calling for an end to armed groups operating outside state authority and warning against their participation in government have heightened political sensitivity ahead of his trip.
US officials have for months urged Baghdad to bring all weapons under state control and to exclude armed factions from the next government, according to Iraqi officials. Those demands have become central to post-election negotiations.
Read more: Why Iraq’s PMF disarmament is a different battle from Lebanon’s Hezbollah
