Pompeo Threatens Iran After U.S. Bases Attacked in Iraq
WASHINGTON (Dispatches) -- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has threatened Iran with a "decisive” response if U.S. interests were harmed in Iraq, after a series of rocket attacks on bases.
"Iran must respect the sovereignty of its neighbors and immediately cease its provision of lethal aid and support to third parties in Iraq and throughout the region,” he said.
The United States is alarmed by a flurry of recent attacks on bases used by American troops in Iraq.
Two rocket attacks this week targeted a compound near Baghdad International Airport, which houses U.S. troops, with an incident Monday wounding Iraqi troops.
Pompeo pinned the blame for the latest attacks squarely on what it called "Iran’s proxies”.
By proxies, the top U.S. diplomat means popular Iraqi forces which are currently integrated into the country’s army. Washington regards them a thorn in its side because of their crucial role in routing Daesh and other terrorist groups in Iraq.
The forces, instead, feel beholden to Iran for training and preparing them at a time when the United States and other countries had left Iraq at the mercy of terrorists who had once reached the gates of capital Baghdad.
President Donald Trump’s administration, which is close to Saudi Arabia and the occupying regime of Israel, has been trying to pressure the Iraqi government into shunning popular forces.
The United States last week imposed sanctions on three leaders of Hashd al-Shaabi.
Pompeo’s threats came in the wake of a Friday report by The Wall Street Journal which said Saudi Arabia is quietly seeking to mend ties with Iran amid economic
concerns and doubts about Washington’s backing for Riyadh.
A possible rapprochement between Riyadh and Tehran is deemed by Washington as a threat to American interests because it takes away the pretext for the United States to project Iran as a threat and milk Saudi Arabia, observers say.
"Riyadh’s newfound interest in better relations with regional rivals comes as Saudi officials question how much backing it has from the U.S. and other allies,” the Journal said.
Washington was quick to point the finger at Tehran when Yemeni forces attacked Saudi oil facilities earlier this year.
On Friday, UN chief Antonio Guterres said the United Nations has not been able to independently corroborate that the cruise missiles and drones used in attacks earlier this year on an airport and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia were allegedly of Iranian origin.
The UN chief said in a report to the council hat the UN also can’t confirm that the missiles and drones were transferred from Iran "in a manner inconsistent” with the Security Council resolution that endorsed the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six key countries.
On the Saudi attacks, Guterres said UN experts were able to examine debris recovered by the Saudis from a June 12 attack on the Abha international airport in the southwest, from attacks on Saudi Aramco oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais on September 14, from a second attack on the Abha airport in August, and an attack on another oil facility in Afif in May.
Yemen’s Houthi fighters claimed responsibility for the Aramco drone attack on the world’s largest crude oil processing plant in Saudi Arabia at Abqaiq that dramatically cut into global oil supplies.
"Iran must respect the sovereignty of its neighbors and immediately cease its provision of lethal aid and support to third parties in Iraq and throughout the region,” he said.
The United States is alarmed by a flurry of recent attacks on bases used by American troops in Iraq.
Two rocket attacks this week targeted a compound near Baghdad International Airport, which houses U.S. troops, with an incident Monday wounding Iraqi troops.
Pompeo pinned the blame for the latest attacks squarely on what it called "Iran’s proxies”.
By proxies, the top U.S. diplomat means popular Iraqi forces which are currently integrated into the country’s army. Washington regards them a thorn in its side because of their crucial role in routing Daesh and other terrorist groups in Iraq.
The forces, instead, feel beholden to Iran for training and preparing them at a time when the United States and other countries had left Iraq at the mercy of terrorists who had once reached the gates of capital Baghdad.
President Donald Trump’s administration, which is close to Saudi Arabia and the occupying regime of Israel, has been trying to pressure the Iraqi government into shunning popular forces.
The United States last week imposed sanctions on three leaders of Hashd al-Shaabi.
Pompeo’s threats came in the wake of a Friday report by The Wall Street Journal which said Saudi Arabia is quietly seeking to mend ties with Iran amid economic
concerns and doubts about Washington’s backing for Riyadh.
A possible rapprochement between Riyadh and Tehran is deemed by Washington as a threat to American interests because it takes away the pretext for the United States to project Iran as a threat and milk Saudi Arabia, observers say.
"Riyadh’s newfound interest in better relations with regional rivals comes as Saudi officials question how much backing it has from the U.S. and other allies,” the Journal said.
Washington was quick to point the finger at Tehran when Yemeni forces attacked Saudi oil facilities earlier this year.
On Friday, UN chief Antonio Guterres said the United Nations has not been able to independently corroborate that the cruise missiles and drones used in attacks earlier this year on an airport and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia were allegedly of Iranian origin.
The UN chief said in a report to the council hat the UN also can’t confirm that the missiles and drones were transferred from Iran "in a manner inconsistent” with the Security Council resolution that endorsed the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six key countries.
On the Saudi attacks, Guterres said UN experts were able to examine debris recovered by the Saudis from a June 12 attack on the Abha international airport in the southwest, from attacks on Saudi Aramco oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais on September 14, from a second attack on the Abha airport in August, and an attack on another oil facility in Afif in May.
Yemen’s Houthi fighters claimed responsibility for the Aramco drone attack on the world’s largest crude oil processing plant in Saudi Arabia at Abqaiq that dramatically cut into global oil supplies.