BAGHDAD — Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi's foreign tour this week included three stops, most notably Saudi Arabia. It was his first visit to the country since he assumed his position about three years ago. Also, the visit occurred at a time when Gulf relations are going through a historic crisis that erupted after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates officially cut ties with Qatar.
Before leaving for Saudi Arabia, Abadi said in a May 17 meeting attended by Al-Monitor and a group of media professionals that his visit to Saudi Arabia was planned more than a year ago and that he would not discuss the Gulf crisis. He also added that Iraq will not take part in the crisis in any way whatsoever.
“The visit to Saudi Arabia aims to strengthen the relationship between the two countries, especially on the economic level, as Riyadh promised to provide facilitations to Iraqi investors and contribute to the reconstruction of Iraqi cities liberated from the Islamic State [IS], in addition to raising the level of security coordination between the two countries in the fight against terrorism.”
Abadi arrived in Riyadh on June 19 as the head of a high-level government delegation. He met with King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, then-Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef and then-Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
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