Baghdad, The newspapers issued in Baghdad today, Thursday, the twenty-third of February, followed the visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Hussein Amir Abdullahian to Baghdad and his talks with Iraqi officials, and the results of the negotiations of successive Kurdish delegations in Baghdad.
On Abdullahian’s visit to Baghdad, Al-Zawraa newspaper, published by the Iraqi Journalists Syndicate, indicated that the President of the Republic, Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid, had received an official invitation to visit Iran, conveyed by the Iranian minister.
It quoted a statement by the Presidency of the Republic as saying by President Rashid: “Iraq and Iran are neighboring countries and they have historical relations and common bonds, as they can contribute to strengthening security and stability in the region, and encouraging reliance on dialogue and calm to solve problems in regional and international issues,” pointing out that “the consolidation of security requires the cooperation of all countries in the region.
The President of the Republic referred to “the need for coordination and consultation on issues of common interest in a way that serves the interests of the Iraqi and Iranian peoples and other peoples of the region,” noting “the importance of communication and exchanging views and ideas between officials of the two countries to confront the challenges of terrorism and extremism.”
The newspaper added: “The Iranian Foreign Minister affirmed his country’s position in support of Iraq’s efforts to consolidate its security and stability, and its desire to strengthen the partnerships between the two countries and perpetuate the bonds of the historical relationship between the two neighboring peoples in a way that serves cooperation and joint coordination.”
The newspaper also referred to Prime Minister Muhammad al-Sudani’s affirmation of the government’s keenness to maintain the best relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. On the other hand, the Iranian minister affirmed the depth of relations between the two neighboring countries, his country’s aspiration to hold a new round of talks for the joint higher committee between the two sides, and the Iranian government’s commitment to everything that would contribute to Iraq’s progress and prosperity.
Al-Sabah newspaper, published by the Iraqi Media Network, followed the results of the successive Kurdish delegation negotiations in Baghdad.
In this regard, it said: “There is an atmosphere of optimism among the representatives of the Kurdistan Democratic Party regarding the outcome of the marathon negotiations that have been conducted for months by successive multi-level delegations from the Kurdistan region with the federal government in Baghdad.”
The head of the Democratic Party bloc, Vian Sabri, said in an interview with “Al-Sabah” that “several delegations from the region visited Baghdad, and today there is also a delegation for two days in Baghdad.”
Sabri added, “The region’s delegation discussed the budget, oil, and border crossings, and made important strides in many files,” adding, “There are sub-committees communicating with the government regarding border crossings, oil, and the budget, and working to reach a common vision to resolve differences between the region and the federal government.”
While the newspaper quoted the representative of the party bloc, Jay Taymur, as saying: “The region’s delegations from different levels visited Baghdad as part of various rounds of talks with the aim of finding solutions to intractable problems between the federal government and the region, which is an attempt to zero all problems, and these intentions are present among the leaders of the region represented by the head of the party.” Massoud Barzani and the head of the regional government, Nechirvan Barzani.
He pointed out that “the leaders of the region are trying to zero the problems and find a solid ground for relations, and the positive atmosphere and the current consensus between the two parties must be invested,” noting that “the budget agreement is in its final stages and we are optimistic about reaching an agreement that can be implemented.”
In another matter, Al-Zaman newspaper followed the directions of the Ministry of Electricity to sign energy contracts with international companies.
Al-Zaman said: “The Ministry of Electricity went to sign contracts for electric power with the GE American company, confirming the readiness of the contracts to maintain generating units for a period of five years.”
It referred to the words of the Minister of Electricity, Ziyad Ali Fadel, during the opening of the Iraq Energy Exhibition in its eighth session: “There are a number of major international companies that participated in the exhibition, including the German companies Siemens and the American GE.”
The minister said: “The ministry will sign an agreement with Siemens, and another with the American company in the coming days.”
He explained: “The contracts are ready for the maintenance of generating units with major companies for a period of five years, and there are a group of projects to increase production in the next three years.”
He indicated: “The current year will witness work on investing associated gas to support the production sector, which requires continuous work, within the agreements with the two companies,” stressing: “There is an explicit trend towards clean energies, and reducing the costs of energy production by reducing the use of fuel, within the coming stage to implement solar energy projects.”
Source: National Iraqi News Agency