IRNA – Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi elaborated on the process of US forces expulsion from Iraq, saying: “we were able to reduce the size of American forces in Iraq to more than 60%.”
Regarding the strategic dialogue, during this year we have entered three stages of dialogue, and in the second stage we were able to obtain an explicit admission from the American president Trump that the Americans will pull out of Iraq, and before reaching the third stage we were able to reduce the size of American forces in Iraq to more than 60%., Al-Kadhimi told IRNA.
The full text of Al-Kadhimi’s interview with Iranian reporters is as follows:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Welcome to your country, Iraq, to Baghdad, the city of peace.
I would like to brief you first on the circumstances that led to the formation of this government which, unlike its predecessors that have ruled in Iraq since the toppling of Saddam’s dictatorship regime, was not the result of elections, but directly because of an exceptional sequence of events the country went through.
There were protests and popular movements all over the Iraqi streets that led to the resignation of Adel Abdul Mahdi’s government. However, the Shiite political blocs did not reach an agreement on a prime minister, though, many names were submitted.
I was nominated by the President to assume the position of the prime minister. In order to accept the responsibility, I stipulated that a clear Shiite unanimity be on me, and so it was.
A complete Shiite consensus entrusted me with the task of running this government, and there were three demands:
– To establish fair and proper elections as soon as possible.
– To safeguard the Iraqi economy from collapse because of the economic crisis due to the downfall in oil prices and the repercussions of the Corona pandemic. And that;
– Iraq becomes a safe country that maintains control over: unruly weapons, organized crime gangs, as well as Da’esh terrorist groups.
My nomination came with these intricate circumstances, and my goal in the first place, was to work on terminate the political problems in Iraq which, frankly speaking, were very serious.
I know that the Iranian media conveys a single-sided viewpoint. Today, I shall represent all Iraqis honestly and our statements will convey an Iraqi national point of view.
As a prime minister, I am given the task of the elections and my objective is to realize it. I have no personal interests, and I will protect everyone’s interest.
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