Iran says US cannot influence its ties with Iraq

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif has said the US is not entitled to influence the ties between Iran and Iraq, the media reported.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and other US officials have no right to "meddle" in neighbourly ties between Iran and Iraq, Zarif said on Thursday in the Iraqi city of Najaf, IRNA news agency reported.

Iran's relations with Iraq are not superficial and are deeply-rooted in the history and culture, he was quoted as saying.

"Outsiders will eventually leave the region, and it is the regional nations that will remain" to live with each other, said Zarif.

He stressed "I am confident that Iran-Iraq relations have a bright future."

On January 9, Pompeo paid a surprise visit to the Iraqi capital Baghdad to meet with Iraqi leaders to discuss bilateral relations and regional issues, Xinhua reported.

Following that, the Iranian foreign minister arrived in Iraq on Sunday for talks with senior Iraqi officials in diverse areas, including US "intervention" in the mutual ties between Tehran and Baghdad.

The visit of Zarif to Iraq came against the backdrop of Iran's efforts to boost its trade with traditional economic partners to counter the US sanctions.

The US has reimposed sanctions on Iran, including its oil exports and banking sectors, following its exit from the landmark Iranian nuclear deal last May.

However, Washington has agreed to let eight countries, including Iraq, keep temporarily buying Iranian oil.

--IANS

pgh/