PM says Iraq stance on US sanctions against Iran serves nobody but Iraqis
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi stance on the US sanctions against Iran serves nobody but the Iraqi people, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Sunday.
In a press release, quoted by Shafaq News on Sunday, spokesman for Abadi’s media office Saad al-Hadithy said, “the Iraqi stance towards the US sanctions against Iran was not taken incidentally or hastily, but it was taken to maintain the interests of Iraq and the Iraqis.”
The spokesman stressed the government’s reluctance to take a decision that could harm the Iraqi people, adding that “the government does not follow suit of any other country or political party when it takes its stances.”
Abadi stressed in statements on Tuesday that Iraq does not sympathize with the US sanctions against Iran but it will abide by them to protect its interests.
US President Donald Trump pulled America out of the Iran nuclear deal in May, reimposing sanctions on the Iranian regime and delivering on an election campaign promise.
The US president said the “defective” 2015 agreement would not stop Iran developing a nuclear bomb and signed a presidential memorandum enacting the US withdrawal.
Iran has been accused of failing to be honest about its nuclear ambitions while supporting terrorist groups and acting in an increasingly hostile way across the Middle East.
Britain, France and Germany condemned the move in a joint statement and promised to stay within the nuclear agreement claiming that it was the only way to prevent a Middle-Eastern nuclear arms race.