Iraqi PM offers Iran-US mediation amid tensions

JAKARTA - Iraqi Prime Minister-elect Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi offered Baghdad as a mediator between Iran and the United States, while stressing Iraq's support for dialogue to ease regional tensions.

"In a telephone conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, we confirmed our support for the diplomatic process and dialogue to defuse the crisis," Al-Zaidi wrote on the X platform, as reported by Sputnik, Wednesday, May 6.

He added that his party had conveyed Iraq's readiness "to act as a mediator between Iran and the US" to encourage a peaceful settlement.

On February 28, the United States and Israel launched an attack on Iranian territory, which Tehran responded to with attacks on Israeli territory and US military facilities in the Middle East.

On April 7, Washington and Tehran announced a ceasefire, but subsequent negotiations in Islamabad ended without a breakthrough.

There have been no new reports of clashes since then, but the US has imposed a blockade on Iran's ports.

The mediators are now trying to arrange a new round of negotiations between the two parties.