A few months ago, Donald Trump secretly went to Iraq and visited the American armed forces based in Ayn al-Asad in the Al Anbar province.
This visit clearly was an act of undermining Iraq national authority; it violated the standard politic rules and regulations and greatly offended Iraqi officials. It induced strong reactions from different parties and political coalitions in Iraq, each releasing separate statements and requesting the immediate expulsion of US troops.
Such derogatory actions were repeated by Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State who made an unannounced visit to Iraq.
En route to Baghdad, Pompeo told reporters "I wanted to go to Baghdad to speak with the leadership there, to assure them that we stood ready to continue to ensure that Iraq is a sovereign, independent nation."
It seems that Pompeo was trying to suggest that Iran is the one who is a threat to Iraq independence and national sovereignty!
US actions in Iraq doesn’t stop here. Many Arab media have now exposed how US have been trying to extort money from Iraq. Al-Araby Al-Jadeed announced that US will give Iraq exemptions from sanctions provided that they clinch deals and agreements with American companies, worth millions of dollars.
On the other hand, Abdul-Mahdi, the Iraqi prime minister has clearly stated that his country “will not be part of the United States' sanctions against Iran,” proving that US “threat or reward” policy has failed in Iraq.
With such reaction, US now has decided to start a new scheme in Iraq. Last Wednesday, US State Department ordered all non-critical government employees to leave Iraq.
In this statement, Washington has claimed that its citizens might be at risk of terrorism, abduction and armed clashes in Iraq.
The statement has also warned that American citizens or companies in Iraq might be at risk of attacks with homemade explosives and bombs Even in Bagdad.
US has also evicted some of its embassy staff, claiming that they might be at “high risk”.
It seems that US officials are trying to present Iraq as an unstable country where people are exposed to many risks and threats. US knows perfectly that by enforcing such a picture, it might be able to push Iraq into accepting its demands. One of the most important ones of these demands is for Iraq to imply with US sanctions on Iran.
Iraq, however, has so far given a firm response by rejecting this demand, something that has greatly angered the White House.
MNA/TT