Iraq PM al-Sudani announces new economic partnership phase with US during Washington visit

WASHINGTON, United States — WASHINGTON — Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani said a new phase of economic partnership with the United States is beginning, announcing from Washington that his government will pursue an "open door" policy toward global investors. He said a series of agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed with American companies, framing the deals as the result of mutual trust between Baghdad and US firms. Al-Sudani said the partnership is intended to accelerate development through strategic projects, adding that the memoranda reflect confidence in US companies' efficiency and in Iraq's economic potential. He pledged that the government would provide the necessary facilitation to turn the agreements into concrete projects and called on American companies to visit Baghdad soon to set a roadmap. All ministries, he said, will work under the open-door policy to remove barriers to investment. Separately, Iraqi Oil Minister Bassam Abbadi signed an agreement to extend an oil pipeline to Syria. US companies active in renewable energy, working with the KAR Group, said they have moved into the implementation phase of a strategic solar energy project in Iraq and have opened a permanent office in Baghdad to manage it. The steps come during al-Sudani's official visit to the United States, following US President Donald Trump's earlier announcement of a major oil partnership and broad commercial agreements with Iraq. The visit is expected to produce more than 18 agreements covering energy, oil, the economy, investment, education, health, industry and defense.