Tabnak - Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir made an unannounced visit to Iraq, meeting with Prime Minister Heidar al-Abadi and the other high-ranking Iraqi officials. It is the first time since 2003 that a Saudi Foreign Minister visits Iraq. It also comes at a time that the two countries have recently experienced one of the most strained periods of their relations after ousting Saddam Hussain.
According to the local media, Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al- Ja’fari gave Al-Jubeir an official welcome right after his arrival in Baghdad. It is said that meeting with the Prime Minister, the President and the Parliament Speaker of Iraq, are among al-Jubeir’s plans during his stay in Iraq.
Stressing the surprising nature of the visit, the International Relations Commission of the Iraqi Parliament announced Saturday afternoon that it had been informed of Jubeir’s trip to Baghdad just through the media and that the visit wasn’t organized beforehand.
It seems that both the local and international media affected by the surprising nature of the visit, because still very little information is available about the aim of such a trip and the exact points on which the Saudi minister wants to talk with the Iraqi officials.
Citing an unnamed Iraqi official, Saudi newspaper Arab News writes that "this visit is to reestablish relations in a more stable way than previously”. The paper has also made a connection between Jubeir’s visit and Al-Abadi’s "efforts to improve strained ties”.
In another take of the visit, Moscow’s Arabic language media Rusiya al-Yaum cited "informed sources” saying that in his visit with the Iraqi officials, Jubeir would raise issues such as enhancing the bilateral relations and resolving the conflicts related to replacement of the Saudi Ambassador to Iraq.
Noting the dispute over the ambassador, Reuters notes in a report that Saudi Arabia reopened its embassy in Baghdad a year ago following a 25-year shutdown. But Iraq later asked for the ambassador to be replaced after he made comments about Iranian involvement in Iraqi affairs and the alleged persecution of Sunni Muslims, angering local Shi'ite politicians and militia leaders.
Sporadic reports published in the media aside, it seems that Jubeir’s trip could better be interpreted if we see it in the context of Saudi Arabia’s new wave of activism and aggressive foreign policy in the region.
In fact, after the election of Donald Trump as the President of the United States, Riyadh sees itself in a more favorable condition in the Middle East comparing to Obama era and is trying its best to build upon the situation and strengthen its position against its regional rivals, especially Iran.
Not a long time has passed since Jubeir’s speech at the Munich Security Conference, in which he once again accused Iran of having a destructive role in the region and interfering in the other countries’ internal affairs. He has also declared Saudi readiness to join hands with the new US administration and forge a new type of cooperation in the region.
In this context, it comes with a little surprise that Saudi Arabia is now putting its focus on Iraq as one of the most important Iranian allies in the region and is trying to pull the country toward its own orbit. Actually it seems that after failing to do so by the means of pressure and making accusations, now the Saudis have adopted a new tactic, trying to reach their goal by showing friendly gestures.
In this framework, one should even expect that in his meetings with the Iraqi officials, Jubeir suggests Saudi financial and other types of aid to the Iraqi government in order to win Baghdad’s presence in its new regional agenda. However, it is very unlikely that such obvious moves could really convince Baghdad to take distance from Tehran.
