ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Saleh al-Mutlaq, Iraq’s former deputy prime minister, has broken rank with the more passive stance of other senior Iraqi politicians, telling Iraqi media on Tuesday night he is “hoping to see regime change in Iran”.
The veteran Sunni Arab politician’s comments come as tensions between Iran and the United States risk dragging Iraq into a proxy war.
Regime change must happen so that Iran can “deal with the world through the logic of the state, not by exporting its revolution,” Mutlaq told Iraqi broadcaster al-Sumaria.
Overturning the theocratic regime that has ruled Iran for the last 40 years will make it a country that “looks after its people and doesn’t intervene in the affairs of its neighbours,” he added.
In a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on Monday, US President Donald Trump told reporters Washington is not interested in regime change in Tehran, but warned that obtaining nuclear weapons is still a red line.
“I’m not looking ... to hurt Iran at all. I’m looking to have Iran say ‘no nuclear weapons’. It has a chance to be a great country with the same leadership. We’re not looking for regime change,” Trump said.
Iraq is concerned it could find itself caught in the crossfire if Iran’s spat with the US escalates further.
Washington withdrew from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran in May 2018 and reimposed a raft of economic sanctions, dealing a serious blow to its economy.
In recent weeks, the US has deployed an aircraft carrier group and B-52 bombers to the Persian Gulf, with a further 1,500 US troops and four aircraft to come in response to an unspecified threat from Iran and its proxies.
Mutlaq vehemently opposed the US-imposed sanctions on Iran, as “they cause the suffering of ordinary people, not the regime,” citing Iraq’s own experience under UN sanctions in the 1990s.
The former deputy PM’s views are at odds with Iraq’s political mainstream. Other senior politicians have tried to be as un-confrontational as possible, describing both the US and Iran as allies, calling for an end to military escalation, and stressing Iraq should only be involved as a mediator.
Political veteran Mutlaq has been a prominent figure in Iraqi politics since 2003, serving as deputy to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki until August 2015. He is currently president of the Sunni Arab-led Iraqi Front for National Dialogue.
He is a longtime critic of what he views as Iranian intervention in Iraqi affairs, most recently calling for the expulsion of the Iranian-backed Hashd al-Shaabi from western Mosul.
Despite consistently voicing criticism of the US invasion and occupation, he opposed calls in February for US troops to withdraw.
Although he is grateful for US and Iranian help in the fight against Islamic State (ISIS), be believes they acted out of self-interest.
“The Americans only intervened when they felt Daesh [Islamic State] posed a threat to their own country,” while Iran only intervened when “Daesh were knocking on Erbil’s door”, when they saw Iraq’s Shiite-majority regime under threat, he said.
The veteran Sunni Arab politician’s comments come as tensions between Iran and the United States risk dragging Iraq into a proxy war.
Regime change must happen so that Iran can “deal with the world through the logic of the state, not by exporting its revolution,” Mutlaq told Iraqi broadcaster al-Sumaria.
Overturning the theocratic regime that has ruled Iran for the last 40 years will make it a country that “looks after its people and doesn’t intervene in the affairs of its neighbours,” he added.
However, any regime change take should take place without foreign – specifically American – intervention, he warned.
In a joint press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo on Monday, US President Donald Trump told reporters Washington is not interested in regime change in Tehran, but warned that obtaining nuclear weapons is still a red line.
“I’m not looking ... to hurt Iran at all. I’m looking to have Iran say ‘no nuclear weapons’. It has a chance to be a great country with the same leadership. We’re not looking for regime change,” Trump said.
Iraq is concerned it could find itself caught in the crossfire if Iran’s spat with the US escalates further.
Washington withdrew from the landmark 2015 nuclear deal with Iran in May 2018 and reimposed a raft of economic sanctions, dealing a serious blow to its economy.
In recent weeks, the US has deployed an aircraft carrier group and B-52 bombers to the Persian Gulf, with a further 1,500 US troops and four aircraft to come in response to an unspecified threat from Iran and its proxies.
Mutlaq vehemently opposed the US-imposed sanctions on Iran, as “they cause the suffering of ordinary people, not the regime,” citing Iraq’s own experience under UN sanctions in the 1990s.
The former deputy PM’s views are at odds with Iraq’s political mainstream. Other senior politicians have tried to be as un-confrontational as possible, describing both the US and Iran as allies, calling for an end to military escalation, and stressing Iraq should only be involved as a mediator.
Political veteran Mutlaq has been a prominent figure in Iraqi politics since 2003, serving as deputy to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki until August 2015. He is currently president of the Sunni Arab-led Iraqi Front for National Dialogue.
He is a longtime critic of what he views as Iranian intervention in Iraqi affairs, most recently calling for the expulsion of the Iranian-backed Hashd al-Shaabi from western Mosul.
Despite consistently voicing criticism of the US invasion and occupation, he opposed calls in February for US troops to withdraw.
Although he is grateful for US and Iranian help in the fight against Islamic State (ISIS), be believes they acted out of self-interest.
“The Americans only intervened when they felt Daesh [Islamic State] posed a threat to their own country,” while Iran only intervened when “Daesh were knocking on Erbil’s door”, when they saw Iraq’s Shiite-majority regime under threat, he said.
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