• About Us
  • Who Are We
  • Work With Us
Tuesday, June 17, 2025
No Result
View All Result
The Globe Post
39 °f
New York
44 ° Fri
46 ° Sat
40 ° Sun
41 ° Mon
No Result
View All Result
The Globe Post
No Result
View All Result
Home Featured

Can Iraq Balance Relations With Both Saudi Arabia and its Arch-Rival Iran?

Staff Writer by Staff Writer
10/11/24
in Featured, Middle East
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi in Saudi Arabia

King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud (R) greets Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi upon his arrival in Riyadh on October 21, 2017. Photo: AFP

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

In many ways, this may be a rare moment of tenacity for Iraq. The country is starting to step out of despondency, recovering economically and politically from the war against the Islamic State, as well as the measures taken by the government in Baghdad to curb the Kurdish independence drive.

At the moment, U.S. policy toward Iraq relies heavily on forging a strong Saudi-Iraqi partnership, which relieves Washington from having to fund Iraq’s rebuilding.

Iraqi-Saudi ties have thawed significantly recently, becoming stronger than they have been in three decades.

Saudi Arabia hasn’t had a diplomatic presence in Iraq since the Gulf War of 1991 when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait. The ties remained severely limited even after the American invasion of Iraq in 2003, which preceded the strengthening of successive Shia political ruling parties in Iraq, whose interests the Saudis saw to be increasingly tied to Iran.

“After 2003, the Saudis gave Iraq the cold shoulder as it was opposed to a Shiite-led government,” Joel Wing, an Iraq analyst and writer behind the Musings On Iraq blog, told The Globe Post. “In the last year, though, the two countries have been opening up and restoring relations.”

The past few months saw the opening of the Saudi Embassy in Baghdad and a consulate in Najaf, as well as the start of regular flights between the two countries – all attesting to the significantly improving relations between the nations.

“The thaw in relations is unprecedented, as there seems to be a genuine interest in strengthening economic and political relations between the two countries,” Mehiyar Kathem, a research associate focusing on state building and international development at the University College London, told The Globe Post.

The Saudi Arabia-Iraq Coordination Council was inaugurated last year in Riyadh with intentions to strengthen ties between the nation further. Security and reconstruction partnerships are aimed at improving cooperation on investment in oil and gas industry, trade, as well as student and cultural exchanges.

“For Iraq, Saudi Arabia can be very important from an economic perspective,” Umer Karim, a doctoral researcher at the Department of Political Science and International Studies, University of Birmingham, told The Globe Post. “Saudi investors and businesses can boost up economic activity in the country and also can be a big monetary support in terms of reconstruction of Iraqi territories destroyed in the war against ISIS.”

In October, Saudi Arabia for the first time participated in the Baghdad International Fair saw, with at least 60 companies attending the event.

“Iraq is desperate for reconstruction assistance, and Saudi Arabia, and by extension the Arab Gulf, can provide necessary funds for areas that were heavily destroyed,” Kathem said. “This is important not only for stability but also for the image making of [Iraqi Prime Minister] Haider al-Abadi, who needs to be seen to be doing something for devastated, largely Sunni, provinces in Iraq.”

This approach may also have security implications: Washington and Riyadh believe that reconstruction using Gulf funding can be a way to improve Baghdad’s relations with its Arab neighbors.

“The very start of Saudi-Iraqi engagement itself cannot have happened without a genuine will to establish relations on both sides,” Karim said. “This relationship, for now, may remain limited to facilitating bilateral trade and commerce, but eventually a more vibrant political partnership between the two countries cannot be disregarded.”

Like the Saudis, many countries in the region isolated Iraq after the Gulf War, but that may be slowly changing. Kuwait, for instance, was one of the main donor countries to Baghdad during the war against the Islamic State.

Iraq’s improved relations with its neighbors are beneficial for Washington, which may be hesitant to directly engage in Iraq’s reconstruction but sees the need for a strong Iraq. Empowered Baghdad can bring stability to the region, so the U.S. is investing political resources in encouraging Saudi Arabia and its Gulf partners to participate in these rebuilding efforts.

“What we are witnessing is the beginning of an improvement in relations orchestrated by the U.S. with a view to meeting two complementary goals,” Kathem said. “The first is to push back against Iranian expansionism in the region, and the second, particularly important for the U.S., is to help Iraq rebuild using Gulf reconstruction funds – mostly loans.”

Saudi Arabia, for its part, shares most of these goals, but primarily aims to shift Iraqi politics away from Iran. Riyadh’s interest in reconstruction will support Saudi Arabia’s long-term interests in turning Iraqi Shiite elites away from Tehran.

“A stronger Iraq – Saudi partnership in the region will stabilize the conflict-prone northern Gulf, as well as ensure that Iraq is a neutral actor in the ongoing conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran,” Wing said. “It has been a long-held fear of Saudi Arabia that Iraq would be swallowed up by Iran; an improvement in relations shows that Iraq is willing to stand on its own two feet and decide its own foreign policy and according to its own interests.”

Securing a presence in the country, particularly before May’s 2018 elections, has also been a motivating factor for Saudi Arabia.

“Saudi Arabia realizes that it focused much of its attention in previous years on supporting Sunni political groups; its thinking is changing today that to affect change in Iraq it needs to reach out to non-Sunni groups,” Kathem said. “This is a major change in policy towards Iraq and this round of Iraqi elections.”

If the election is dominated by Iran-aligned political cadres, such as the Hashd groups and Islamic Dawa party factions, which is likely to happen, according to Kathem, the influence of Tehran will not be weakened, but Saudi engagement will continue, as the country is making efforts to become a more reliable partner for Iraq.

“Saudis will calibrate their political intentions vis-a-vis Iraq according to the result of Iraq’s elections, but anything that leads to a reduction in Iranian influence is a favorable outcome for the Saudis,” Karim said.

If a more secular and nationalistic government emerges, Iraq will likely make a more forceful effort to have an independent foreign policy outlook. A more secular Iraq will likely strive to improve interaction with its Arab neighbors while developing closer economic ties and balancing relations and rivalries in the region.

Karim added that depending on the nature of the government that is formed after the elections, Iraq might even assume the role of an interlocutor, if not mediator, between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

“Iraq understands that its relationship with Iran has reached a plateau,” Kathem said. “The Iraqi government has been desperately trying to balance relations and ongoing rivalries in the region, particularly between Iran and Saudi Arabia.”

Much will depend on the nature of the future government, but if Iraq can balance its ties between the U.S. and Iran, it can deal with Tehran and Riyadh, Wing concluded.

Share4Tweet
Staff Writer

Staff Writer

With Contributions by AFP

Related Posts

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman
Opinion

Can the UN Human Rights Council Protect Rights While Abusers Sit at the Table?

by Mandeep Tiwana and Sigrid Lipott
October 28, 2024
Delegation on the river Seine, Saudi Arabia during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games Paris 2024
Opinion

Risky Business in Saudi Arabia’s Bid for the 2024 World Cup

by Mustafa Qadri
August 1, 2024
Iranian flag
National

US Not Expecting Policy Change From Iran Under New President

by Staff Writer with AFP
July 9, 2024
Hajj, the religious pilgrimage for muslims will be dramatically scaled back this year and will include social distancing measures.
World

Death Toll Tops 1,000 After Hajj Marked by Extreme Heat

by Staff Writer with AFP
June 21, 2024
Iran street
Middle East

Raisi’s Death Unlikely to Change Iran Foreign Policy: Analysts

by Staff Writer with AFP
May 21, 2024
Anti-LGTBQ protest in Iraq
World

LGBTQ Iraqis Fear Dark Days Ahead After Anti-Gay Law

by Staff Writer with AFP
April 30, 2024
Next Post
Protesters at Moscow's Pushkinskaya Square

Not Our Tsar: Russians Protest Against Putin’s Inauguration

Rached Ghannouchi, the head of the Ennahda party, after casting his ballot. Photo: Reuters

Youssef Cherif: Tunisian Elections Proof of Democratic Transition

Recommended

Tens of thousands of protestors shut down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan on Saturday, April 5, 2025, protesting the Trump administration's abuse of the separation of federal powers as well as the deep cuts to governmental services overseen by presidential advisor Elon Musk.

Civil Society Is Holding the Line. Will Washington Notice?

June 17, 2025
An Iranian walking in front of a wall painting of the Iranian flag in Tehran

How Much Damage Has Israel Inflicted on Iran’s Nuclear Program?

June 16, 2025
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on November 19, 2017

Israel MPs to Vote on Opposition Bid to Dissolve Parliament

June 11, 2025
Two protesters wave Mexican flags while standing on a vandalized Waymo vehicle during a demonstration in Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 2025, following a series of aggressive federal immigration operations in the city.

Unrest in Los Angeles Over Immigration Raids as Troops Sent by Trump Fan Out

June 9, 2025
US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House on August 4, 2020. Photo: Drew Angerer/AFP.

US Steel, Aluminum Tariff Hikes to Take Effect Wednesday: W. House

June 4, 2025
textile workers in Kenya

Workers’ Rights in ‘Free Fall’ Globally: Report

June 2, 2025

Opinion

Tens of thousands of protestors shut down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan on Saturday, April 5, 2025, protesting the Trump administration's abuse of the separation of federal powers as well as the deep cuts to governmental services overseen by presidential advisor Elon Musk.

Civil Society Is Holding the Line. Will Washington Notice?

June 17, 2025
A Black Lives Matter mural in New York City.

Fuhgeddaboudit! America’s Erasure of History

April 2, 2025
Bust of Deputy Rubens Paiva in the Chamber of Deputies

Democratic Brazilians Are Still Here

March 18, 2025
A woman from Guatemala

Dispatch From Central America

January 28, 2025
US President Donald Trump

Dear Trump Supporters: Is This the America You Wanted?

January 28, 2025
Putin talks to Trump in Hamburg

From Roosevelt to Trump: The Complicated Legacy of Personal Diplomacy

November 15, 2024
Facebook Twitter

Newsletter

Do you like our reporting?
SUBSCRIBE

About Us

The Globe Post

The Globe Post is part of Globe Post Media, a U.S. digital news organization that is publishing the world's best targeted news sites.

submit oped

© 2018 The Globe Post

No Result
View All Result
  • National
  • World
  • Business
  • Interviews
  • Lifestyle
  • Democracy at Risk
    • Media Freedom
  • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Columns
    • Book Reviews
    • Stage
  • Submit Op-ed

© 2018 The Globe Post