Iraqis push back on sanctions

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s administration is pressuring Iraq to stop buying energy from its neighbor and sole foreign supplier, Iran, in what has become a major point of conflict between Washington and Baghdad.

Iraqi leaders, fearing that a further shortfall in power would lead to mass protests and political instability in the country, are pushing back on the demand, which is rooted in Trump’s sanctions against Iran.

The dispute has frayed U.S. diplomacy with Baghdad as Iraq tries to steady itself after the U.S. military withdrawal in 2011 and the campaign against the Islamic State group.

Iraq’s defiance further jeopardizes Trump’s goal of getting all nations to comply with sanctions after withdrawing from the deal to limit Tehran’s nuclear program last year. Already, European nations have set up a legal financial mechanism to do business with Iran, and China and India are resisting U.S. efforts at prodding them to cut off oil purchases.

Tensions rose after Trump said Feb. 3 that he planned to have U.S. troops who have returned to Iraq “watch Iran,” despite Baghdad’s need to maintain cordial ties with its fellow Shiite neighbor. Trump’s comments added momentum to proposed legislation in Iraq that would limit the movement and activities of U.S. troops.

“The people of Iraq have suffered from the blockade and are aware of the harm done to the people by their actions,” Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi of Iraq said last week after a meeting with the governor of Iran’s central bank, Abdolnasser Hemmati. He was referring to 13 years of crippling sanctions imposed on Iraq by the United States when Saddam Hussein was in power.

“Iraq will not be part of the sanctions regime against Iran and any other people,” Abdul-Mahdi said.

Hemmati said he hoped Iraq and Iran would cooperate more in banking, which could also weaken U.S. sanctions.

U.S. officials are seeking to cut off Iraqi purchases of natural gas and electricity, even though the country relies on those for a good portion of its energy needs.

Iraq’s energy production and grid capabilities have lagged since the U.S.-led invasion of 2003, and blackouts in cities are common, even with the current purchases. The energy shortfall is especially acute in the sweltering summers, which has led to large protests that become national crises.

Iranian natural gas is the single most critical energy import in Iraq, but U.S. officials say purchases must end now because gas falls under the U.S. sanctions. And the Trump administration has told Iraq’s leaders that they have until late March to end electricity purchases. Officials in Baghdad say there is no easy substitute for either one because it would take three years or more to adequately build up Iraq’s energy infrastructure.

The Trump administration’s push on Iraq is part of its strategy of using sanctions to weaken Iran’s economy and prompt political or policy change.

Administration officials aim to coerce Iranian leaders to fully dismantle their nuclear and ballistic-missile programs and curb their support for Shiite Arab militias in the Middle East.

U.S. officials say they want to get Iranian oil exports to zero, but they gave leeway to some countries when imposing sanctions in November. The State Department and Treasury granted waivers to eight countries, including China and India, Iran’s two biggest customers, to allow continued purchases for 180 days.

Iraq was given a 45-day waiver on electricity, which was extended by 90 days in December.

On Jan. 9, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke to Iraq’s two top leaders in Baghdad about “energy independence,” a State Department spokesman said.

Iraqi officials said the U.S. demand acknowledges neither Iraq’s energy needs nor the complex relations between Baghdad and Tehran.

Haider al-Abadi, the former prime minister, said in an interview that Iraq was in a precarious situation with the United States because “we cannot afford to make them angry.” But, he said, the Americans have failed to “look at the geopolitics of Iraq.”

“We happen to be neighbors of Iran; the U.S. is not,” al-Abadi said. “We happen to have the longest border with Iran; the U.S. does not. And we don’t have that powerful an economy.”

The defiance by Iraqi leaders underscores the lack of support among many nations for the sanctions and the U.S. goal of crippling Iran’s government. Analysts say they do not expect China and India to stop their purchases of Iranian oil even after the 180-day waivers expire.