The US Embassy Closes Its Consulate In Basra For Security Reasons

US Ambassador Matthew Tueller announced the closure of the US Consulate in Basra Governorate for security reasons.

Tueller told a number of media outlets that “Washington and Baghdad agreed on partnership between the two countries and strengthening relations between them,” stressing that “Iraq is a great country and has strategic borders with important neighbors.”

The US ambassador added that “the Iraqi state is a strong sovereign, not only for its citizens but for the region as a whole, and if the state is weak or because of external interventions and the spread of corruption, this will cause major problems and is not in the interest of relations between Baghdad and Washington.”

Tueller continued, “We produced a paper after the strategic dialogue, in which we explain the results of the economic, social and other fields talks. After the meetings in Washington, we gave 155 million dollars to the liberated areas, the displaced and other aid, and we also allocated 500,000 doses of vaccine against the Coronavirus, while 60 million dollars were allocated to the health sector to deal with this pandemic.

On the headquarters of the US consulate in Basra, Tueller said: “We closed the US Consulate in Basra due to cost and security issues, and we may have another vision to re-work in it.”

Tueller warned that “some of Iraq’s neighbors consider the Iraqi state to be a weak state, so they are trying to interfere and impose their will and their agenda in it.”

He stressed that “the United States wants Iraq to have good relations with its neighbors, but it is state-to-state relations, not interference in the country’s internal affairs.