On February 5-6, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will pay a working visit to the Republic of Iraq. In Baghdad, he will meet with President of the Republic of Iraq Abdul Latif Rashid, Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al-Sudani, and Speaker of the Council of Representatives (Parliament) Mohamed al-Halbousi. He will also hold talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Iraq Fuad Hussein.
The focus during the upcoming contacts will be on the main areas of progressive development of the multifaceted Russia-Iraq ties, including the effort to expand the political dialogue and energise trade, economic, cultural and humanitarian interaction. In 2021, mutual trade increased by 120 percent as compared with 2020 (from $120 million to $282 million). Between January and November, 2022, trade grew by 47.5 percent on the same period in 2021 (from $258.5 million to $381.4 million). In this context, it is planned to discuss how to consolidate the positive dynamics in bilateral trade, including by implementing the relevant decisions approved by the Russian-Iraqi Commission for Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation, which held its ninth meeting in Moscow in August 2022.
The parties will analyse the current state and prospects for building up the business partnership in the fuel and energy sector. Russia’s LUKOIL, Gazprom Neft, Bashneft, and Rosneft are implementing a number of major projects in Iraq.
Discussing plans to promote mutually beneficial cooperation in industry and agriculture will be high on the bilateral agenda as well.
The parties will pay due attention to considering the situation in Iraq, primarily in the context of efforts to form a new national coalition government based on support from the main ethnic and religious communities and social groups. The Russian party will express support for the efforts to ensure stability and security in the country, as pursued by the Cabinet of Ministers under Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al-Sudani.
There are years-long ties of friendship and mutually beneficial cooperation linking Russia and Iraq, ties based on the proximity or identity of their approaches to the key issues on the international and regional agenda. Partner interaction between the two countries is a significant factor that has a positive impact on various processes in the Middle East and North Africa. In this connection, Russia is interested in comparing notes at length on current regional problems.
The parties will exchange their assessments of the state and prospects for developments in Syria with a focus on promoting comprehensive political settlement in keeping with UN Security Council Resolution 2254, facilitating the country’s post-conflict rebuilding, and stepping up international humanitarian assistance to Damascus.
The parties will discuss in detail the state of affairs in the Gulf area, including in the light of the Russia-proposed Collective Security Concept.
In a situation where Russia faces unprecedented pressure from the Western countries, Iraq has adopted an even-handed and balanced position with regard to the Russian Armed Forces’ special military operation in Ukraine. Baghdad’s refusal to join the illegal anti-Russia sanctions is a confirmation of the fact that our time-tested bilateral ties are not susceptible to time-serving fluctuations against the background of a changing geopolitical situation.
We regard Sergey Lavrov’s upcoming visit to Iraq as an important part of the consistent efforts to promote multifaceted interaction with our traditional partners in the Middle East. We proceed from the premise that this meets our common long-term interests in ensuring peace, prosperity and stability in this strategically important region.