PM Al-Kadhimi: Iraq Needs Iranian Gas, Electricity
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Prime Minister of Iraq Mustafa al-Kadhimi expressed his country’s willingness to work with Iranian companies in the process of reconstruction, saying Iraq is in need of gas and electricity imported from Iran.
In a meeting with Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber, held in Tehran on Sunday, the Iraqi prime minister said his country needs to take advantage of the capabilities of the Iranian companies for development and completing the reconstruction plans.
“Iraq needs Iran’s gas and electricity, and we declare that the doors of Iraq are open to the Iranian companies,” al-Kadhimi underlined.
The Iraqi premier also stressed that Tehran-Baghdad relations should not be affected by any factor, saying that Iraq strives to fulfill all of its commitments with regard to Iran.
Iraq opposes the inhumane sanctions against Iran and believes that the imposition of sanctions is not a viable solution to any problem, he stated.
The experience of sanctions against Iraq in the 1990s demonstrated that sanctions cause many problems for ordinary people, al-Kadhimi said, Press TV reported.
He also thanked the Iranian government and people for standing by Iraq in the fight against Daesh and other terrorist groups.
Kadhimi noted that Iraq has allocated a quota of 60,000 pilgrims for Iranians willing to head to the holy Iraqi city of Karbala to commemorate Arbaeen.
“However, given the enthusiasm of the Iranian people to attend the Arbaeen ceremony, we will increase Iranians' quota and will consider suitable facilities for them to enter” Iraq, the Iraqi prime minister said.
Kadhimi added that most American forces will exit Iraq by the end of the year.
For his part, the Iranian vice president said the relations between Iran and Iraq play an essential role in boosting security in the region and should be expanded at all levels.
He also thanked the Iraqi government for hosting a conference in Baghdad to ease regional tensions and discover the potential for regional cooperation.
“Iran regards the interference of foreign countries in the region as harmful to regional states and underscores the need for endeavors to boost bilateral and multilateral cooperation,” he noted.
Mokhber emphasized, "The presence of Americans in the region not only failed to benefit regional countries, but also caused great harm to the region’s people."
He furtehr pointed to the great capabilities of Iran’s public and private sectors, particularly in the engineering sector, and voiced the Islamic Republic’s readiness to participate in Iraq’s reconstruction process.