Iraq, Saudi Arabia reopen security dialogue after weeks of tensions

Iraq and Saudi Arabia have launched an effort to repair strained relations following deadly cross-border strikes weeks earlier, with a high-level meeting involving senior intelligence officials in Baghdad.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and Saudi intelligence chief Khalid bin Ali Al Humaidan met in Baghdad on August 7, as reported by Al Jazeera.

During the meeting, Al-Humaidan renewed an invitation for al-Zaidi to visit Riyadh, the Iraqi prime minister’s office said. The earlier trip had been cancelled in protest after a joint Saudi-US operation on July 29 killed 20 fighters from Iraqi armed groups, including five Iranians.

The two officials focused on ways for Baghdad and Riyadh to improve security coordination as tensions continue to simmer across the region, according to al-Zaidi’s office.

Al-Zaidi reiterated his pledge that Iraqi territory would not be used as a launchpad for attacks against other countries, while stressing Baghdad’s determination to protect its sovereignty.

As the news network recalls, the meeting comes after several weeks of strained diplomacy between the two countries.

Saudi Arabia defended last month’s strikes on Iraq as retaliation for drone attacks targeting its oil infrastructure, which Riyadh attributed to the same Iran-aligned Iraqi armed groups.

Iraq’s National Security Council rejected the Saudi justification, describing the operation as a violation of the country’s sovereignty. Iraqi authorities subsequently tightened security measures across the country and along its borders to prevent possible retaliation.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an Iran-aligned network of armed groups that has engaged in increasingly hostile rhetoric toward Riyadh, had threatened to retaliate against the US-Saudi strikes.

However, the group announced on the same day as the high-level meeting that it was postponing any retaliatory action. It attributed the decision to lobbying by Hadi al-Amiri, one of Iraq’s most influential pro-Iran political figures, as well as pressure from other political actors whose identities were not disclosed.

The postponement could provide an opening for Baghdad and Riyadh to ease tensions and prevent further escalation. Iraq has long faced the difficult task of balancing its relationships with both the United States and Iran. The rivalry between Washington and Tehran has repeatedly turned Iraqi territory into a battleground for competing regional and geopolitical interests.

By Nazrin Sadigova