Macron backs Iraq ‘sovereignty’ on first Baghdad visit

 Baghdad

French President Emmanuel Macron met Iraqi leaders yesterday on his first visit to Baghdad, where he stressed the war-scarred country must assert its “sovereignty” despite being caught up in US-Iran tensions. Coming straight from a twoday trip to crisis-hit Lebanon, Macron is the most prominent world leader to visit Iraq since Prime Minister Mustafa Al Kadhemi came to power in May.

The trip aims to “launch an initiative alongside the UN to support a process of sovereignty,” Macron said on the eve of his Iraq visit. In Baghdad, he voiced his support for his Iraqi counterpart Barham Saleh to help fight Islamic State group sleeper cells and resist foreign interference.

“Iraq has been going through a challenging time for several years, with war and terrorism” as well as “multiple foreign interventions”, Macron said. “You have a transition to lead,” he added. “France will be by your side so the international community can help.” But there were few details on the much-vaunted “sovereignty” initiative.

Iraqi officials told AFP they were not expecting new financial or military aid. President Saleh said he looked forward to a longer visit by Macron in 2021, and Al Kadhemi said he hoped France and Europe as a whole could help “restore stability” to the rocky region.

“We do not want to be an arena for confrontations but a zone of stability and moderation,” the Iraqi premier said, adding that France and Iraq would sign energy agreements in the future and deepen military cooperation. France has stressed its signs of support for Iraq in recent months.

Top diplomat Jean-Yves Le Drian, who was the only minister to accompany Macron from Lebanon to Iraq, had also visited Baghdad in July and urged the leadership there to “dissociate itself from regional tensions”. Macron last week insisted that “the fight for Iraq’s sovereignty is essential”. He said Iraqis, who had “suffered so much”, deserved options besides domination by regional powers or Islamist extremists.