Iraq’s Coordination Framework has nominated Nouri al-Maliki as their leader to attempt to form the next Iraqi government after November’s election. Maliki was Iraq’s premier from 2006 to 2014, and has led the State of Law bloc since then, trying to return to the position. Now, it seems, he’s on the verge of doing so.
President Trump, however, appears to be trying to veto that appointment, declaring on Truth Social that Maliki “should not be allowed” to return to power, and threatening to withhold all US support for Iraq if he does.
“If we are not there to help, Iraq has ZERO chance of Success, Prosperity, or Freedom,” Trump declared in the post, accusing Maliki of “insane policies and ideologies.” Maliki’s nomination had been spoken of favorably by a number of Shi’ite factions as well as Kurdish ones, suggesting that he has the votes, if indeed Trump isn’t able to order him replaced.
Former Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki | Image is CC 4.0, from Wikimedia
Trump’s threat comes back to the recent threats by US officials to cut off all of Iraq’s oil revenue, which is held in a dollar-denominated account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, if the government included any factions that were sign as “Iran-backed.”
Trump’s threat takes this one step farther though, threatening not just to bankrupt Iraq by seizing functionally all of their government’s money, but by completely severing US ties with the nation if Maliki specifically returned to power.
The Federal Reserve Bank relationship was established in 2003 during the start of the US occupation and reconstruction of Iraq, and made some measure of sense at the time. Now that Iraq has moved on, it is merely leverage for the US to dictate terms to them whenever the mood suits.
