Saudi Arabia, Iraq Sign Military Cooperation Agreement

Saudi Arabia and Iraq signed a memorandum of understanding on military cooperation. The signing took place in Riyadh, the kingdom’s capital, after a long conversation between Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman and his Iraqi counterpart Thabet al-Abbasi. During the meeting, bin Salman and Al-Abbasi reviewed the current situation and prospects for bilateral ties between Saudi Arabia and Iraq, focusing on the defense sector. According to the Saudi Gazette, part of the talks focused on escalating tensions between Israel and Iran. The two sides also discussed the latest developments in the region and joint efforts to restore security and stability in the Middle East.

Riyadh’s military and political activity in the Arab world and Saudi Arabia’s rapprochement with Russia and China cannot but worry the USA, which has begun negotiations with the Kingdom’s political leaders on a bilateral security agreement that for the first time “does not mention normalization of relations between Riyadh and Israel as a prerequisite.” According to the Axios news portal, the US-Saudi agreement will be separate from a much broader previous agreement that was to include a bilateral defense treaty and an agreement to cooperate in the development of nuclear energy for civilian purposes in exchange for peace between Saudi Arabia and Israel. According to Axios, Washington and Riyadh are discussing a separate agreement because the White House “wants a security deal before the end of President Joe Biden’s term.”