Tom Barrack: The Businessman Reengineering the Levant Direct Policy Foundation | July 15, 2026

Tom Barrack: The Businessman Reengineering the Levant Direct Policy Foundation | July 15, 2026

Tom Barrack: The Businessman Reengineering the Levant Direct Policy Foundation | July 15, 2026

What is Next to Iraq?

{{title:chars:2}} Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaydi is seeking to make his visit to Washington in mid-“July” a starting point for addressing the crises that have strained relations between the two countries, as well as the serious economic pressures on Iraq that have resulted from them, He will also seek to conclude a memorandum of understanding to transition the security relationship from the framework of the “international coalition”—which expires next September—to a bilateral cooperation agreement {{title:chars:2}}  

Al-Zaydi’s expectations for the visit may differ from those of Donald Trump, as the latter wants to declare victory in Iraq by endorsing decisive plans to resolve the issue of armed groups and the Popular Mobilization Forces, while the former seeks U.S. understanding of the challenges facing this issue and the need for more time and arrangements to resolve it through Iraqi efforts
{{title:chars:2}} On the economic front, Al-Zaidi will seek U.S. mediation with the World Bank and the Arab Gulf states to secure soft loans that would prevent the country from declaring its inability to pay civil servants’ salaries, while the U.S. president wants to announce unconditional market access—with terms that can be marketed—for U.S. companies to operate in Iraq.