ERBIL, Kurdistan Region — Saudi Arabia has appointed a new ambassador to Baghdad for the first time in more than two decades. Samir bin Subhan will be the first Saudi ambassador to Iraq since the 1991 Gulf War when relations between the two countries froze when Iraq invaded Kuwait and briefly attacked the Saudi kingdom.
Subhan, a 46-year-old general of the Saudi army, is believed to play a key role in sectarian conflicts in Iraq. The selection of a military general has widely been interpreted as a move against Iranian influence in Iraq.
A number of Saudi ambassadors were sworn in Tuesday in Riyadh before newly appointed King Salman bin Abdulaziz, who has taken a tough line against Shiite influence in the region.
Subhan was a military attaché in Beirut’s Saudi Embassy for years. His role was instrumental in arming the Lebanese military as part of a French-Saudi deal worth an estimated $3 billion. Saudi Arabia has been backing Lebanon’s army against the powerful Hezbollah, which is supported by Tehran.
Subhan is seen as being close to the West after his active role in fighting Saddam Hussein’s army in 1991. Subhan was awarded an honorary title by the US State Department and was part of former US General Colin Powell’s Central Command in Operation Desert Storm.
Analysts say the designation of a military man to the post of ambassador in Iraq is likely to counter the Iranian support for Shiite militias in the country.
“The designation of a military man was more or less expected,” said Aso Muhammad, a security analyst, of the new Saudi move.
“Iraq’s Sunnis repeatedly urged Saudi Arabia not to leave Iraq to the Iranians,” Muhammad said.
Former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki previously publically accused Saudi Arabia of harboring terrorists during his administration.
In the wake of the new Iraqi government, relations rapidly normalized as a line of Iraqi officials visited Riyadh, including President Fuad Masoum, Parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri and former Kurdish Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari.
King Salman has also officially invited Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to visit Saudi Arabia, which is expected to take place after he receives the new ambassador to Baghdad.
This new turn of events between Sunni Riyadh and Shiite Baghdad comes at a time when Saudi Arabia is leading a coalition against Shiite groups in Yemen.
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