Top Diplomat Claims Iran is ‘Pillar of Region’ on Iraq Tour

Iran's Acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani claimed that Iran and Iraq are "two main pillars in the region" while Iran continues to destabilize Iraq through its Shia proxies.

During a joint press conference in Baghdad with his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein on Thursday, he blamed the region’s instability on Iran’s archenemy, Israel, currently at war with Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza.

“All countries in the region are together with interaction and solidarity to build a secure and stable phase, and it is the Zionists who have shown that they are the main factor in the instability of the region, he said.
Iran’s largest proxy, Hezbollah, is currently at war with Israel on its northern border with Iran’s Yemeni proxy, the Houthis, targeting the country’s south with its Red Sea region blockade and a series of missile and drone attacks.

The latest assertion from Iran’s acting foreign minister came amidst widespread accusations of the regime’s role in destabilizing Iraq by supporting militia groups that challenge the sovereignty and governance of Iraq through its backing of Shiite armed groups.

Bagheri's trip includes high-level meetings with Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Mohammed al-Sudani and President Abdul Latif Rashid, extending his outreach to the Kurdistan Region to engage with Kurdish leaders Nechirvan Barzani and Masoud Barzani.

The visit is part of a broader regional tour that previously included stops in Lebanon and Syria, where Bagheri met with figures such as Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as Iran seeks to expand its influence across the region.