Rouhani’s Historic Visit to Iraq a Major Blow to Trump

By Staff, Agencies

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani arrived in Baghdad on a trip that is aimed at solidifying strategic ties despite US efforts to keep the two neighbors apart and curb Iran's influence in the region.

The trip, described as "historic and noble" by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, was viewed by experts as Iran's response to US President Donald Trump's snap trip to Iraq in December.

Trump slipped into Iraq on Christmas and spent most of his short visit outlining how he wanted to keep US troops in the Arab country in order to "watch" Iran with which Iraq shares a 1,400-kilometer-long border.

The unannounced visit drew fire from Iraqi officials and regional leaders, including Rouhani, who said the secret visit - as if to a US state - undermined Baghdad’s sovereignty.

Unlike Trump, who had to land in a military base in the dark of the night with no Iraqi officials on hand to welcome him, Rouhani touched down in Baghdad in broad daylight and was received by high-ranking authorities.

Reacting to Trump's secret visit, Rouhani asserted that flying into Iraq under the cover of darkness meant "defeat" for the US in Iraq and asked the US president why he did not opt for an "open and official visit" instead.

Rouhani told reporters in Tehran before departure on Monday that ties between Iran and Iraq were nothing like the relations between Baghdad and the “occupying” American forces.

“The US is despised in the region; the bombs they dropped on the people of Iraq, Syria and other countries are not forgettable and at the same time, Iran’s brotherhood towards countries of the region will always be remembered,” he said.

The trip comes on the heels of the Daesh’s [the Arabic acronym for terrorist ‘ISIS/ISIL’ group] defeat in Syria and Iraq, an achievement that is widely believed to have been impossible without Iran’s critical role in providing advisory assistance to both governments.