The leaders of Egypt, Jordan and Iraq have held a summit in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, it is being told that in this meeting, talks have been held on various issues including terrorism and regional.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi and Jordan’s King Abdullah II have met in Baghdad, during the first visit by an Egyptian head of state to Iraq since Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990.
The first Gulf War ruptured diplomatic relations between Iraq and Egypt, but these have improved in recent years with senior officials from both countries exchanging visits.
The summit comes within the framework of the tripartite cooperation mechanism between the three countries, which held its first round in Cairo in March 2019.
On Sunday, the three leaders discussed several areas of regional interest, including the recent development on the Palestinian issue, combating terrorism and economic cooperation, an Egyptian presidency statement said.
“The leaders stressed the need to intensify consultation and coordination between the three countries on the most important regional issues,” it added.
Palestinian protesters clash with security forces in the city of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank
The meetings are seen partly as an attempt to neutralise Iran’s influence across the region. Al-Kadhimi also aims to shore up regional alliances and bolster Iraq’s standing in the Middle East as a mediator.
It recently hosted Iranian and Saudi officials in Baghdad in April, their first high-level meeting since Riyadh cut diplomatic ties with Tehran in 2016.
“This visit is an important message to our people that we are mutually supportive and unified to serve our people and the people of the region,” al-Kadhimi said, according to a statement from his office.
Al Jazeera’s Mahmoud AbdelWahed reporting from Baghdad said the summit was not only of economic significance but also a political one.
“There is partly an intent from Egypt and Jordan apparently to bring Iraq back to an Arab coalition … and also to make use of the fortunes in Iraq in order to build or create some mutual trade and investment and development projects,” he said.
