Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi will arrive in Saudi Arabia on Monday in an official visit taken upon the invitation of the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
Kadhimi will be accompanied by a delegation of high-ranking officials and ministers, Iraqi official sources said, expecting great results from the visit.
Iraqi ambassador to Saudi Arabia Qahtan al-Janabi said that Kadhimi will visit Saudi Arabia in the “coming days” to discuss bilateral relations between the two countries and develop Iraq’s relationship with its Arab neighbors.
Janabi said that an Iraqi delegation headed by Iraqi Finance Minister Ali Abdul-Amir Allawi had arrived in Saudi Arabia to get a head start with the meetings of the Saudi-Iraqi Coordination Council.
“It is expected that the visit, which is the first for the PM outside Iraq, will have significant positive results at the level of bilateral relations between the two countries, and we expect to develop and strengthen these relations to the level that meets the ambition of the leadership in the two countries, and the level of ambition of the two neighboring brotherly peoples,” Janabi told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Janabi asserted that the visit will primarily aim to develop Iraq’s relations with its Arab neighbors, and will also discuss regional and global issues, including the coronavirus pandemic.
On Sunday, before heading to Saudi Arabia, Kadhimi is expected to meet with the Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif in Baghdad.
Iraqi Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ahmed Al-Sahaf told Asharq Al-Awsat that Zarif will meet Iraqi leaders and the foreign minister.
Kadhimi is also planning to visit Washington this month to launch the second round of the US-Iraq strategic dialogue that is the first of its kind in more than a decade. They aim to put all bilateral issues on the table, including the faltering Iraqi economy and the possible withdrawal of US troops.
