Category: Politics & Legal

Baghdad, The Council of Ministers held its regular session headed by Prime Minister Muhammad Shiaa Al-Sudani.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

WASHINGTON, US President Joe Biden spoke on Monday with President Zelenskyy of Ukraine to underscore the United States’ lasting commitment to supporting Ukraine as it defends its freedom against Russian aggression.

In a White House press release, President Biden shared that his administration will quickly provide significant new security assistance packages to meet Ukraine’s urgent battlefield and air defense needs as soon as the Senate passes the national security supplemental and he signs it into law.

President Biden also underscored that the US economic assistance will help maintain financial stability, build back critical infrastructure following Russian attacks, and support reform as Ukraine moves forward on the path of Euro-Atlantic integration.

President Biden also spoke with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to discuss their steadfast support for Ukraine as it defends against Russian aggression.

President von der Leyen congratulated President Biden on the House of Representatives’
recent passage of the national security supplemental, which will be essential to helping meet Ukraine’s urgent battlefield needs once it passes the Senate and President Biden signs it into law.

They spoke about how sustained international support is vital to Ukraine’s fight for freedom.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

Baghdad, The Minister of Industry and Minerals, Khaled Battal Al-Najm, received in his official office at the Ministry’s headquarters the new French Ambassador to Iraq, Patrick Durel, and discussed with him a number of issues.

The minister said, according to a statement by the Ministry of Industry: ‘Iraq has distinguished relations and clear steps to develop bilateral relations with France, especially after the visit made by the Prime Minister to France last year.’

He pointed to a number of files that will be discussed during his upcoming visit to France at the head of a large official delegation from the Ministry and the private sector companies to develop relations and enhance cooperation between the two sides through investment opportunities and projects available in the industrial sector and in light of the availability of the ground and environment prepared for Iraqi-French cooperation and partnership in projects, stressing that Iraq looks forward to building positive and broad relations with all count
ries, including France, which has unique and successful relations with Iraq.

For his part, the French ambassador stressed the seriousness and desire of his government to develop relations and joint work with Iraq, expressing readiness to invite and encourage French companies to work and partner with Iraq in the industrial field in a way that serves the interests of the two friendly countries.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, Tuesday, strongly condemned the Israeli occupation attacks on Rafah City, south of Gaza, which claimed 22 innocent Palestinian lives, 18 of whom are children.

In a press statement, the Malaysian Foreign Affairs Ministry said that, “the situation in Rafah is extremely delicate, given the high risk of a humanitarian catastrophe. With over 1.5 million Palestinians residing in crowded makeshift shelters within a 64 square km strip of land, any attack could have devastating consequences.” “Any Israeli aggression will result in significant loss of life,” with Rafah being “the last bastion and refuge for Palestinians fleeing from northern Gaza since 198 days ago,” underscoring the fact that Palestinians have “simply nowhere else to run,” added the Ministry. The Ministry stressed, “Israel’s belligerence knows no bounds as it totally disregards the red line set by its closest ally.” Malaysia called on the global community to continue condemning the Israeli occupation’s attacks on Palestinians,
to demand a permanent ceasefire, and to recognize Palestine as a sovereign state to put an end to seven decades of occupation.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

Baghdad, The President of the Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, confirmed, during his meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Erbil, that the Kurdistan Region will remain a factor of safety and stability in the region.

A statement by the Kurdistan Regional Government stated, ‘As part of his visit to Iraq, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Turkish Republic, and his accompanying delegation arrived on Monday evening in the Kurdistan Region, where he was received at Erbil International Airport by Nechirvan Barzani, President of the Kurdistan Region, and Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister, and Qubad Talabani, Deputy Prime Minister and a number of ministers and senior officials in the Kurdistan region.’

It added, “During the meeting, they discussed President Erdogan’s visit to Baghdad, his meetings and talks with senior Iraqi officials, and Turkey’s relations with Iraq and the Kurdistan region, especially in the economic, trade, and security cooperation fields.”

During the meeting, Nechirvan
Barzani expressed the Kurdistan Region’s desire to develop its relations with the Republic of Turkey in all fields, stressing that ‘the Kurdistan Region will remain, as it has always been, a factor of safety and stability in the region,’ and praised Turkey’s cooperation and support for the Kurdistan Region in difficult times.

At the meeting, Masrour Barzani, Prime Minister of the Regional Government, affirmed the readiness of the Kurdistan Regional Government to develop relations and joint economic and commercial cooperation with Turkey. He also spoke about the job and investment opportunities available to Turkish companies in all fields, and praised these companies’ continued work and implementation of their projects even in light of the difficult economic conditions.

For his part, President Erdogan affirmed his country’s continued support for Iraq and the Kurdistan region, and its readiness for joint cooperation and further development of relations with Iraq and the Kurdistan region in all fields, stressi
ng the necessity and importance of maintaining security and stability in the region, resolving problems, and guaranteeing the rights of the components.

The statement pointed out that “the agreements and memorandums of understanding between Turkey and Iraq, protecting border security, confronting terrorism, the latest developments in the region in general, and a group of issues of common interest, formed another focus of the meeting.”

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

BRUSSELS, Kuwait Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, received on Monday Cyprus Foreign Minister Dr. Constantinos Kombos on Monday.

The meeting took place on the sideline of EU-Gulf Cooperation Council High Level Forum on Regional Security and Cooperation hosted in Luxembourg.

During the meeting, the two exchanged views on various issues on the regional and international arena.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

Baghdad, The Council of Ministers approved the signing of a memorandum of understanding for associated gas for electric power generation between the Ministry of Electricity and Siemens Energy Company.

In its session today, the Ministries of Planning and Finance approved the inclusion of the projects required to be implemented in accordance with the aforementioned memorandum of understanding and the availability of the necessary allocations and funding for them.

The Council voted to authorize the Ministry of Electricity with the necessary powers to proceed with implementation, as an exception to the contracting methods stipulated in the Instructions for Implementing Government Contracts (2 of 2014), in a way that ensures speedy completion and achieving the desired goal of signing the aforementioned memorandum of understanding.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

BRUSSELS, Kuwait Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, received on Monday Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Ambassador Sheikh Dr. Abdullah bin Ahmad Al-Khalifa on Monday.

The meeting took place on the sideline of EU-Gulf Cooperation Council High Level Forum on Regional Security and Cooperation hosted in Luxembourg.

During the meeting, the two exchanged views on various issues on the regional and international arena.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

Baghdad, Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al-Sudani chaired today, Tuesday, the sixteenth regular session of the Council of Ministers, in which the general situation in the country was discussed, a number of important files were discussed, topics on the agenda were discussed, and decisions and recommendations were taken regarding them.

A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said: ‘Al-Sudani reviewed the results of his official visit to the United States this month, which produced results that are in the interest of Iraq in terms of economy, politics, security, and regional stability, and in the interest of building bilateral strategic relations, in addition to signing a number of memorandums of understanding and partnership between the public sectors, and the Iraqi private sector on the one hand, and the major leading American companies and financial and banking institutions on the other hand.

Al-Sudani also reviewed, according to the statement: The visit of the Turkish President to Baghdad yesterday, whi
ch witnessed the signing of the bilateral strategic framework agreement, and the signing of 26 joint memorandums of understanding for various institutions between the two countries, which will be reflected in the economic and development partnership, in addition to the quadrilateral understanding that included Iraq, Turkey, Qatar, and the UAE. Regarding the development road project, the investment opportunities it holds, and entering into a new phase of security and economic understandings and in the field of water management and water shares in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, all of which will push relations forward.

During the session, the Prime Minister directed the Ministers to follow up on the implementation of the memorandums of understanding, and to provide the utmost efforts in order to achieve the highest levels of mutual benefit, for all sectors and activities covered by the memorandums of understanding, in addition to assigning the committees concerned with securing the requirements for success a
nd good implementation of the agreements and understandings signed with the United States and Turkey.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

BRUSSELS, Kuwait Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, participated in a high-level forum on regional security convened by the European Union in the duchy of Luxembourg on Monday.

The event witnessed participation of member states from both the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the European Union (EU), which focused on enhancing regional security and stability through cooperation and coordination efforts.

Source: Kuwait News Agency

Baghdad, The National Security Advisor, Qasim Al-Araji, met today, Tuesday, on the sidelines of the twelfth meeting of senior officials for security issues held in the Russian city of Saint Petersburg, with the Russian Undersecretary of the Ministry of the Interior for Legal and International Affairs, Igor Zubf.

Al-Araji discussed with Zubf, according to a statement by the Chancellery, strengthening security cooperation between the two countries and continuing cooperation in the field of combating terrorism and exchanging information.

The statement explained that Al-Araji reviewed with Zubf the developments in the political and security situation at the international and regional levels, in addition to emphasizing the importance of resorting to the principle of dialogue and diplomacy, to resolve international crises and spare the world the repercussions of dangerous and destructive wars.

Source: National Iraqi News Agency

TOKYO, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and her Bahraini counterpart Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani agreed on Tuesday to work closely together toward preventing the further deterioration of the situation in the Middle East, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said.

During their 25-minute telephone conversation, Kamikawa said Japan condemns any action that could lead to the escalation of the situation, adding that Japan has strongly called on both Iran and Israel to exercise restraint, according to a press release from the ministry.

Kamikawa and Al-Zayani also confirmed their stronger cooperation on the situation in Gaza, with Japan seeking to work closely with the Arab countries, including Bahrain, which holds the presidency of the Arab League this year. Kamikawa called for an immediate ceasefire so that a conducive environment for humanitarian assistance activities is ensured in a sustainable manner, and the release of the hostages is realized. While pointing out the importance of a two-state solution, she sa
id, “Japan strongly hopes this would lead to a sustainable ceasefire, and Japan would actively and persistently make diplomatic efforts.” In addition, the two exchanged views on various issues concerning maritime security, particularly the situation in the Red Sea, and shared the intention to strengthen cooperation in order to maintain and strengthen the “rule of law.” Furthermore, they agreed on continued close coordination in strengthening the bilateral relations between Japan and Bahrain and in addressing various issues of the international community.

Source: Kuwait News Agency