BAGHDAD: Iranian President Hassan Rowhani arrived on Monday in the Iraqi capital Baghdad for his first visit to the neighbouring country since he took office in 2013. The three-day visit is aimed at bolstering ties between Iran and Iraq.

 It is Rouhani’s first visit to Baghdad. Prior to his departure he said Iran was determined to strengthen brotherly ties with its neighbour, Iranian state television reported on Monday.

 The visit will send a strong message to the United States and its allies that, in the face of US sanctions, Iran still plays a dominant role in Iraqi politics.

 During the three-day visit a series of agreements will be signed in energy, transport, agriculture, industry and health, Iran’s state news agency IRNA said. “We are very much interested to expand our ties … particularly our transport cooperation,” Rouhani said at Tehran’s Mehrabad airport.

 A senior Iranian official accompanying Rouhani told Reuters that Iraq was “another channel for Iran to bypass America’s sanctions…. This trip will provide opportunities for Iran’s economy.

 Trade between Iran and Iraq now stands at around $12 billion a year — tilted toward Iran with gas and energy exports — and Rouhani has said he would like to see it rise to $20 billion.

 The sharp downturn in Iran’s economy since US President Donald Trump’s decision last May to pull out of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers has pushed the country’s leaders to try to expand trade ties with neighbours. — Reuters </s> Iran's Rouhani seeks to boost ties on first visit to Baghdad

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iranian President Hassan Rouhani arrived in Baghdad on Monday, making his first official visit to the nation that Tehran once fought a bloody war against and later backed in the battle with the Islamic State group.

Since Rouhani's election in 2013, Iraq has relied on Iranian paramilitary support to fight IS, following the militant group's capture of the Iraqi city of Mosul and other territory in both Iraq and Syria.

Now with the militants facing a final territorial defeat in the Syrian village of Baghouz, Iran is looking for Iraq's continued support as it faces a maximalist pressure campaign by President Donald Trump after his decision to withdraw America from Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers.

Rouhani, who is accompanied on the three-day visit by a high-ranking political and economic delegation, was received by an honor guard on landing in Baghdad, where he was welcomed by Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammed Ali Al-Hakim.

He proceeded for a stop at a Shiite shrine in the Iraqi capital and was then to meet with both President Barham Salih and Prime Minister Abdel Abdul Mehdi, as well as visit other politicians and Shiite leaders.

Rouhani's visit underscores how much has changed since the 1980s, when Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded Iran, sparking an eight-year war that killed 1 million people. After the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq toppled Saddam, Iran began a campaign of backing militants who targeted American forces in Iraq.

Tehran also made political connections with Iraq's Shiite leaders, who had been persecuted by Saddam's government. Iran's former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became the first Iranian president to visit Iraq on a trip in 2008.

Iraq and Iran share a 1,400-kilometer-long (870 miles) border. Trump made a snap December trip to Iraq and made comments that U.S. forces should stay in Iraq to keep an eye on Iran, something dismissed by both Iran and Iraqi leaders, whom Trump did not meet on the visit.

Speaking at Tehran's Mehrabad Airport before leaving for Iraq, Rouhani's official website quoted him as saying the trip's goal was "deepening bilateral relations."

"Relations between Iran and Iraq are special," Rouhani was quoted as saying. "In the recent years, the people of Iran have passed a test with pride, and that is wherever the peoples of the region faced a problem and asked for the help of the Iranian nation and government, we rushed to help them."

Rouhani, who had visited Iraq privately before becoming president, had planned an official visit in 2016 but it was cancelled over unspecified "executive" problems.

This time, Rouhani, who is on a second four-year-term, is particularly vulnerable because of the economic crisis assailing the Iranian rial, which has hurt ordinary Iranians and emboldened critics to openly call for the president's ouster.

Tehran sees the U.S. military presence at its doorstep in Iraq as a threat — one that could also undermine Iran's influence over Baghdad.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif alluded to that on Sunday while in Baghdad, saying that any country which tries to interfere with the good Iran-Iraq relations would "be deprived of opportunities for itself."

Iran also sees Iraq as a possible route to bypass U.S. sanctions that Trump re-imposed last year after pulling the U.S. out of the 2015 nuclear deal.

Last year, Iran's exports to Iraq amounted to nearly $9 billion. Tehran hopes to increase the roughly $13 billion volume in trade between the two neighboring countries to $20 billion. Also, some 5 million religious tourists bring in nearly $5 billion a year as Iraqis and Iranians visit Shiite holy sites in the two countries.

Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report. </s> During the phone call, the two sides conferred on the latest developments in bilateral ties, and discussed arrangements for the upcoming visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Iraq.

Zarif's previous phone call with his Iraqi counterpart was made on March 2, which also included talks on making preparations for President Rouhani's upcoming visit.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is due to pay an official visit to Iraq on March 11 to further boost bilateral relations between the two neighboring countries. It will be Rouhani’s first visit to Iraq during his tenure. </s> Image copyright AFP Image caption Iranian President Hassan Rouhani (L) was welcomed by his Iraqi counterpart, Barham Saleh

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has begun his first official visit to Iraq since taking office five years ago.

After meeting his Iraqi counterpart, Mr Rouhani said he wanted deeper political and economic ties between their states, which fought a bloody war in the 1980s.

He noted that Iran had come to Iraq's aid in recent years when it was threatened by the Islamic State group.

Iranian officials see Iraq as a way to mitigate the US sanctions reinstated by President Donald Trump last year.

Mr Trump's decision, made after he abandoned a 2015 nuclear deal, has led to a sharp downturn in Iran's economy, pushing the value of its currency to record lows, quadrupling its annual inflation rate, and driving away foreign investors.

What has Iran's president said?

Mr Rouhani began his three-day visit to Iraq with a visit to the shrine of Shia Muslim Imam Moussa al-Kadhim in northern Baghdad. He was then greeted by his Iraqi counterpart, Barham Saleh, at the presidential palace.

At a joint news conference, Mr Rouhani said: "We want to forge very close relations with Iraq. We do not seek to be allied against others, but rather seek to invite other regional states to our alliance as well."

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Mr Rouhani visited the shrine of Imam Moussa al-Kadhim in Baghdad

He pointed out that Iran had stood by Iraq in "difficult" times - a reference to its training and arming of thousands of Iraqi Shia paramilitary fighters who have helped drive Islamic State (IS) militants out of the large parts of Iraq they seized in 2014.

Mr Saleh said he agreed with the "necessity of enhancing trade" and "setting up related economic infrastructure between our countries and peoples".

Iran's president later held talks with Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi, whose governing coalition includes Shia parties with deep links to Tehran.

Before leaving Tehran, Mr Rouhani said Iraq's ties with Iran could not be compared to its links with an "occupying country" like the US that was "hated in the region".

The US, which invaded Iraq in 2003 to overthrow President Saddam Hussein, has sent thousands of troops to the country to advise and assist security personnel battling IS. But it and Iran back opposing sides of the conflicts in Syria and Yemen.

How much trade already takes place?

A senior Iranian official accompanying the president told Reuters news agency that Iraq was "another channel for Iran to bypass America's unjust sanctions" and that his trip to Baghdad would "provide opportunities for Iran's economy".

Economic ties between the neighbours are already extensive.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Household appliances and air conditioners are major Iranian exports to Iraq

In the 12 months up to March 2018, Iraq imported about $6bn (£4.6bn) of goods from Iran, including food, agricultural products, household appliances, air conditioners and car parts. Iraq paid another $6bn to Iran for natural gas, petroleum products and electricity.

Mr Rouhani has said he wants to increase bilateral trade from $12bn to $20bn annually. However, Iraq has faced pressure from the US to stop doing business with Iran.

Iraq discontinued crude oil swaps with Iran in October and did not receive an exemption when a new wave of sanctions came into effect the following month. It was, though, reportedly granted a limited waiver to give it time to find alternative supplies of electricity.

Have Iran-Iraq ties always been good?

No. Under Saddam - who was a Sunni - Iraqi forces invaded Iran in 1980, sparking an eight-year war that left a million people dead and devastated both countries.

Bilateral relations only began to improve after Saddam was toppled and an Iraqi government led by Shia parties - many of them backed by Iran - came to power.

Iran later armed Shia militants who attacked US forces in Iraq to press them to withdraw and targeted Sunnis in a brutal sectarian conflict.

In last year's elections in Iraq, parties linked to Iran-backed paramilitary groups won the second largest number of seats in parliament. But the largest number went to a bloc led by the Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who opposes US and Iranian influence. </s> BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iranian President Hassan Rouhani condemned U.S. military intervention in the Middle East on Monday as he began a first official visit to Iraq, meant to bolster Tehran’s influence and expand trade ties to help offset renewed U.S. sanctions.

His visit also signaled to Washington and Gulf Arab allies that, in the face of U.S. sanctions reimposed after the U.S. pullout from world powers’ nuclear deal with Iran, Tehran still plays a dominant role in Iraqi politics.

Prior to his departure, Rouhani said Shi’ite Muslim Iran was determined to strengthen ties with its Shi’ite-led Arab neighbor, Iranian state television reported on Monday.

Those ties “cannot be compared to Iraq’s relations with an occupying country like America, which is hated in the region,” the semi-official Mehr news agency quoted Rouhani as saying before he flew to Baghdad. “One cannot forget the bombs that Americans dropped on Iraq, Syria and other regional countries.”

During Rouhani’s three-day visit a series of agreements will be signed in energy, transport, agriculture, industry and health, the Iranian state news agency IRNA said.

“We have the right conditions for cooperation in all areas, including trade and investment..., energy, electricity and gas, banking ties and cooperation on roads and railways,” Rouhani told journalists after meeting Iraqi President Barham Salih.

“Iraq is an important state in the region and it can play a bigger role in providing security,” he said without elaborating.

A senior Iranian official accompanying Rouhani told Reuters that Iraq was “another channel for Iran to bypass America’s unjust sanctions ... this trip will provide opportunities for Iran’s economy”.

Iraq relies on Iranian gas imports to feed its power grid and has asked for extensions to a U.S. waiver to continue importing Iranian gas since U.S. President Donald Trump restored sanctions on Iran’s vital energy sector in November.

The slump in Iran’s economy since Trump’s decision last May to pull out of the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers has pushed the Islamic Republic to try to expand commercial ties with neighbors.

The 2015 agreement lifted sanctions that had been imposed by the United States, European Union and United Nations in return for Iran curbing aspects of its nuclear program.

The Trump administration said the accord was too generous and failed to rein in Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities and its involvement in regional conflicts in Syria and Yemen.

Other signatories to the deal have been trying to salvage the pact, but U.S. sanctions have largely scared off European companies from doing business with Iran.

The Europeans have promised to help firms do business with Iran as long as it abides by the deal. Iran has itself threatened to pull out of the agreement unless EU powers demonstrably protect its economic benefits. </s> Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was in Baghdad on Monday, making his first official visit to the nation that Tehran once fought a bloody war against and later backed in the battle with the Daesh terrorist group.

Since Rouhani's election in 2013, Iraq has relied on Iranian paramilitary support to fight Daesh, following the militant group's capture of the Iraqi city of Mosul and other territories in both Iraq and Syria.

The visit is a strong message to the United States and its regional allies that Iran still dominates Baghdad, a key arena for rising tension between Washington and Tehran.

"We are very much interested to expand our ties with Iraq, particularly our transport cooperation," Rouhani said at Tehran's Mehrabad airport. "We have important projects that will be discussed during this visit."

Rouhani, who is accompanied on the three-day visit by a high-ranking political and economic delegation, was received by an honor guard on landing in Baghdad, where he was welcomed by Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohammed Ali Al-Hakim. Rouhani then visited the shrine of Imam Kadhim, the seventh of 12 imams revered by Shiites worldwide. Rouhani, a Shiite cleric himself, paused to reach out and touch the gate surrounding the tomb. He then met President Barham Salih and spoke to journalists, telling them that a "stable Iraq will lead to stability in the entire region." "We want to be united countries, not against others, but attracting others to our unity," Rouhani said. For his part, Salih said Baghdad's central location made it crucial to resolving regional issues. He thanked Iran for its support during Iraq's fight against Daesh.

Relations between the two countries were not always close, they fought a bloody war from 1980 to 1988. Tehran's influence in Baghdad grew after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq toppled the government of Saddam Hussein.

Since Rouhani's election in 2013, Iraq has relied on Iranian paramilitary support to fight Daesh terrorists, following the militant group's capture of the Iraqi city of Mosul and other territory in both Iraq and Syria. Now with the militants facing a final territorial defeat in the Syrian village of Baghouz, Iran is looking for Iraq's continued support as it faces a serious pressure campaign by the U.S. President Trump after his decision to withdraw America from Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers.

The visit also came amid Baghdad coming under pressure from Washington to limit political and trade ties with its neighbor. Shiite-majority Iraq is walking a fine line to maintain good relations with its key partners Iran and the U.S. who themselves are arch-foes. It has been under pressure from Washington not to get too close to its neighbor, particularly after its withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal. Baghdad was given limited waivers to continue buying electricity and natural gas from Iran, but Washington has urged Iraq to partner with U.S. companies to become energy independent.

Regarding the regional impact of this visit, the talks between Iraq's chief Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani and Rouhani would show that it also aimed at bolstering the ranks of Shiite Muslims in the face of Iraq's warming ties with Iran's Sunni-ruled rival Saudi Arabia. The meeting could "prevent Saudi Arabia and its allies from sowing discord" between Iran and Iraq, a Shiite cleric from the Iranian holy city of Qom was recently quoted as saying in Iran's Ebtekar newspaper. Saudi Arabia is keen to develop relations with Baghdad to counter the influence of Iran in Iraq, which is seeking economic support to rebuild after the defeat of Daesh.

During the three-day visit, a series of agreements will be signed in fields such as energy, transport, agriculture, industry and health Iran's state news agency IRNA said.

"Iraq is another channel for Iran to bypass America's unjust sanctions imposed on Iran. This trip will provide opportunities for Iran's economy," a senior Iranian official, who is accompanying Rouhani, told Reuters.

"These two countries are the two pillars and pulse of the region," Zarif said.

"Therefore, this three-day summit will be historic and hopefully a major step forward in bilateral ties," he was quoted by the news agency ILNA as saying on Sunday.

The parlous state of Iran's economy since U.S. President Donald Trump's decision last May to pull out of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers has pushed the country's leaders to try to expand trade ties with neighbors.

The agreement lifted in 2016 sanctions that had been imposed by the United States, European Union and United Nations in return for Iran's curbs on its sensitive nuclear programme.

The Trump administration, which said the accord was too generous and failed to rein in Iran's ballistic missile programme and its involvement in regional conflicts such as Syria and Yemen, reimposed sanctions on Tehran.

Other signatories to the deal have been trying to salvage the pact after the U.S. exit, but U.S. sanctions have largely scared off European companies from doing business with Iran.

The Europeans have promised to help firms do business with Iran as long as it abides by the deal. Iran has itself threatened to pull out of the 2015 deal unless EU powers demonstrably protect its economic benefits. </s> Tehran: Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani will visit India this week for three days, as per reports on Monday.

He was invited by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year, reports said.

India and Iran have collaborated on key projects, most notably the Chabahar port in southeastern Iran that was inaugurated in December.

India has been a key purchaser of Iranian oil and gas and maintained trade ties even as international sanctions were imposed on Iran over its nuclear programme between 2012 and 2016. </s> Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sharply criticised U.S. military intervention in the Middle East on Monday as he began a first official visit to Iraq, aimed at shoring up Tehran’s influence and expanding trade ties.

The visit also sends a strong message to Washington and its regional allies that, in the face of U.S. sanctions, Iran still plays a dominant role inIraqi politics.

Prior to his departure, Rouhani said Shi’ite Iran was determined to strengthen brotherly ties with its neighbour, Iranian state television reported on Monday.

Those ties “cannot be compared to Iraq‘s relations with an occupying country like America, which is being hated in the region,” the semi-official Mehr news agency quoted him as saying before he left.

“One cannot forget the bombs that Americans dropped over Iraq, Syria and other regional countries.”

During the three-day visit a series of agreements will be signed in energy, transport, agriculture, industry and health, Iran’s state news agency IRNA said.

“We are very much interested to expand our ties … particularly our transport cooperation,” Rouhani said at Tehran’s Mehrabad airport.

He will visit a Shi’ite Muslim shrine in Baghdad’s Khadhimiya district prior to a welcome ceremony, the offices of Iraq‘s president and prime minister said.

A senior Iranian official accompanying Rouhani told Reuters that Iraq was “another channel for Iran to bypass America’s unjust sanctions … This trip will provide opportunities for Iran’s economy.”

The sharp downturn in Iran’s economy since U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision last May to pull out of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six major powers has pushed the country’s leaders to try to expand trade ties with neighbours.

The agreement lifted sanctions that had been imposed by the United States, European Union and United Nations in return for Iran curbing aspects of its nuclear programme.

The Trump administration said the accord was too generous and failed to rein in Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities and its involvement in regional conflicts in Syria and Yemen.

Other signatories to the deal have been trying to salvage the pact, but U.S. sanctions have largely scared off European companies from doing business with Iran.

The Europeans have promised to help firms do business with Iran as long as it abides by the deal. Iran has itself threatened to pull out of the 2015 deal unless EU powers demonstrably protect its economic benefits. </s> Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says the United States cannot “stop” Iran and Iraq’s mutual relations, reminding that Baghdad has established the ties of its own accord.

Zarif made the remarks to BBC Arabic Television on Monday as he is accompanying President Hassan Rouhani during the latter’s historic visit to the Arab country.

“We have good relations with Iraq. Iraq is our neighbor,” the Iranian foreign minister said, and noted that not even former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hossein’s 1980-88 war on the Islamic Republic managed to separate the two nations, ending the historical, geographical, and even family ties between the countries.

“We have never asked the Iraqis to choose us,” the senior diplomat said. “It is the United States, which is pressuring Iraqis to choose [between Iran and the US],” Zarif stated, and noted that Tehran is not after competing with Washington in Iraq either.

Rouhani is in Baghdad on a three-day trip aimed at solidifying bilateral strategic ties. Earlier on Monday and after arrival, he met with his Iraqi counterpart Barham Salih.

He next met with Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi. The two sides signed five memorandums of understanding for the expansion of bilateral cooperation in various economic and healthcare sectors in Rouhani and Abdul-Mahdi’s presence.

The Iranian president is also slated to meet with Parliament Speaker Mohammed al-Halbusi and a number of prominent lawmakers. He will also make stops at Shia holy sites and meet top Iraqi Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who is a major source of influence in the Arab country.

Religious ties have played a definitive role in the relations existing between Iran and Iraq, whose holy cities of Najaf and Karbala respectively house the shrines of the First and Third Shia Imams, Imam Ali and Imam Hussein (AS). Every year, millions of Iranians go on pilgrimage to the holy cities, especially during the ceremonies marking the anniversary of Imam Hussein’s martyrdom.

By providing the Iraqi military with military advisory support, the Islamic Republic played a central role in Iraq’s anti-terror battle against Daesh during the Takfiri group’s campaign of bloodshed and destruction in the Arab country between 2014 and 2017.

Commenting on the nature of the visit, Zarif said, “I do not believe that we are here either to take a measure against any country [or] to seek intervention on behalf of Iran with any country.” “Our positions have been very clear, and we called for dialog.”

He asserted that the Islamic Republic maintains a regional strategy called “a stronger region rather than strong countries or strong men in this region.” “We have had enough of strong men, we need a strong region,” he noted.

Separately, Zarif commented on a payment mechanism that European countries have announced to safeguard trade with Iran.

The UK, France, and Germany, three of the European signatories to the 2015 nuclear agreement, issued a joint statement on January 31, announcing the launch of the long-awaited direct non-dollar payment mechanism meant to protect their trade ties with the country in the face of the United States sanctions.

The US left the agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), last May, defying the fact that it had been ratified in the form of a United Nations Security Council resolution. Washington afterwards returned the sanctions that it had lifted under the accord.

Zarif said the European mechanism alone “does not solve all of Iran’s problems.” Nor does it realize all of Europe’s commitments as a partner to the JCPOA, he added.

He also commented on tensions between the Islamic Republic and Saudi Arabia, saying, “We are prepared for cooperation with Saudi Arabia, but they should acknowledge that their security is tied to ours and our security is tied to theirs.”

Saudi Arabia broke off its diplomatic ties with Iran in early 2016 after protests in front of its Iran-based diplomatic missions against Riyadh’s earlier execution of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Saudi Shia cleric.

This article has been adapted from its original source.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani begins his first official visit to Iraq to boost bilateral ties and trade amid re-instated U.S. sanctions on Iran.