In his first trip abroad, Iranian President Pezeshkian visits Iraq

Iran’s new President Masoud Pezeshkian today began a three-day visit to Iraq.

The visit aims to deepen already close ties with the neighboring country on his first overseas trip since taking office.

The three-day trip comes amid chaos in the Middle East caused by the war in Gaza, which has drawn Iranian-backed armed groups around the region.

This issue also complicates Iraq’s relations with the United States.

In a brief statement issued by the Iraqi prime minister’s office accompanied by a picture of the two men shaking hands on the tarmac at Baghdad airport, it said: “Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani welcomed the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian.”

Pezeshkian has pledged to make relations with neighboring countries a priority as he seeks to ease Iran’s international isolation and lessen the impact of US-led sanctions on its economy.

His visit comes after Western powers yesterday announced new sanctions on Iran for supplying Russia with short-range missiles for use against Ukraine.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani warned Britain, France and Germany that they would “face appropriate and proportionate measures” over the “hostile” act.

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Hours before Pezeshkian’s arrival, an explosion rocked a base at the airport used by the US-led anti-jihadist coalition, Iraqi security officials said.

A spokesman for the Iran-backed Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq said Tuesday night’s “attack” was aimed at “disrupting the Iranian president’s visit.”

Ties between Iran and Iraq, both Shiite-majority countries, have grown closer since the 2003 US-led invasion toppled the Sunni-dominated regime of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein.

“Iraq is one of our friends, brothers and Muslim countries,” Pezeshkian said before leaving Iran, according to footage aired on Iranian state television.

“And for this reason, we will go to this country as the first trip,” he added.

Pezeshkian, who took office in July after early elections following the death of his predecessor Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash, has previously linked strengthening ties to sanctions pressure.

“Relations with neighboring countries… can neutralize a large amount of sanctions pressure,” he said last month.

Iran has suffered from crippling Western sanctions for years, especially after its arch-foe the United States, under then-president Donald Trump, unilaterally abandoned a landmark nuclear deal between the Islamic republic and major powers in 2018.

Pezeshkian has appointed the top diplomat who negotiated the 2015 deal, Mohammad Javad Zarif, as vice president for strategic affairs as part of his efforts to make Iran more open.

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