BAGHDAD -- Iran’s ambassador to Iraq, Muhammad Kazem Al-e Sadeq, said on Sunday that the security of the two countries’ shared borders is a “red line” for Tehran, and confirmed that coordination is under way with Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government to disarm and relocate terrorist and separatist groups from border areas.
In an interview with Tasnim news agency, Al-e Sadeq described Iran-Iraq relations as strategic and rooted in historical, cultural, religious and economic ties. 
He said the implementation of agreements signed during recent high-level visits—including the Shalamcheh-Basra railway project, energy exports, border free zones, and customs facilitation—is advancing through technical committees and monthly follow-up mechanisms, adding that “the development and security of Iraq is the development and security of Iran.”
On aviation, the ambassador said U.S. pressure on airlines and airport infrastructure violates international law and ICAO regulations, and that Iranian diplomats have secured the resumption of flights to Najaf.
He said negotiations are continuing to fully restore flights to all Iraqi airports, insisting that aviation decisions should be based solely on Iraq’s national interests rather than “external pressure.”
Regarding border security, Al-e Sadeq said the comprehensive security memorandum between Iran and Iraq provides a firm legal framework, and that progress has been made with the central government and Kurdish authorities. 
He cited the visit of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan leader Bafel Talabani to Tehran and said the disarmament and relocation of armed groups away from border areas is being implemented in stages, with a joint security committee conducting periodic inspections and intelligence exchanges. He thanked the PUK, KDP and Iraqi federal authorities.
On Iraqi mediation between Tehran and Washington, Al-e Sadeq said Iran welcomes Baghdad’s constructive role, noting its success in hosting early Saudi-Iranian talks, but stressed that any initiative requires “realism, mutual respect, the lifting of unlawful sanctions and credible guarantees.” 
He said Washington’s “contradictory behavior” and unilateral withdrawal from international agreements are behind the impasse.
The ambassador welcomed the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq as a “positive step,” calling foreign military presence the root cause of regional instability and saying Iraqi forces, including the Popular Mobilization Forces, are fully capable of defending the country.
He also expressed Iran’s full support for Iraq’s initiative to convene an eight-nation Persian Gulf dialogue—comprising Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain and Oman—but warned that its success requires “non-interference by extra-regional powers.”
Finally, Al-e Sadeq said Tehran has lodged formal protests over the use of Iraqi airspace by Israel and U.S. forces to attack Iran, and offered technical and intelligence cooperation to strengthen Iraq’s air defense and sovereignty.