President Saleh to start visit to Tehran next week, say sources
Iraqi President Barham Saleh
Tehran (IraqiNews.com) – Iraqi President Barham Saleh is scheduled to visit the Iranian capital Tehran early next week, well-informed sources told Tabnak news agency as relations between the two countries witness a high level of coordination particularly following the recent US sanctions against Hassan Rouhani’s government.
Saleh, on his visit, will be accompanied by a raft of ministers, topped by Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamed Ali al-Hakim, the sources said.
The Iraqi president had received an invitation from Iranian first vice president Eshaq Jahangiri to visit Tehran during the latter’s visit to Nahaf last month to celebrate the religious ritual of Arbaeen.
Saleh concluded on Monday a two-day Gulf tour, which took him to Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
During his meeting with Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the Iraqi president said that the government would work on maintaining ties with Iran in the face of the United States’ sanctions on Tehran.
“Iran is a neighboring country and our interest lies in having good and stable relations with Iran,” Saleh was quoted as saying by Reuters during Sunday’s meeting.
After withdrawing from the 2015 deal on Iran’s nuclear program, the US reimposed sanctions on Tehran in two rounds, the second of which targeting the country’s key oil and banking sectors took effect on November 5.