Trump touts 'tremendous chemistry' with new Iraqi Prime Minister al-Zaidi
during White House visit
[July 15, 2026]
By SEUNG MIN KIM and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump gave Iraq's new prime minister
an effusive welcome at the White House on Tuesday, promoting the
“tremendous chemistry” between him and a fellow wealthy businessman who
arrived at the seat of governmental power without any prior political
experience.
Ali al-Zaidi emerged as a consensus candidate in Iraq after months of
deadlock over the premiership following last year’s parliamentary
elections. Trump endorsed al-Zaidi for the job after he threatened to
cut off U.S. support for Iraq if another candidate became the country's
next prime minister.
“Mark my words, I knew what I was doing,” Trump said in the Oval Office
as he sat alongside al-Zaidi for his first visit outside Iraq as prime
minister. “This man is going to be a great leader in the Middle East,
beyond Iraq. His influence is going to spread all throughout the Middle
East.”
Speaking through an interpreter, al-Zaidi said that he was conveying his
greetings from the “oldest civilization in the world” and that the focus
of his U.S. visit would be to announce an “economic partnership” between
the two countries.
The issue of Iran loomed large in the discussions Tuesday. Iraq has been
under pressure to disarm a network of Iran-backed militias operating in
the country, some of which launched attacks on U.S. bases and diplomatic
facilities after the U.S. and Israel launched their war against Iran in
February. Officially, the Iraqi government has given non-state armed
groups until the end of September to disarm, but some of the most
powerful militias have said they have no intention of doing so.
Al-Zaidi stressed on Tuesday that there will be no justification for
their existence after Sept. 30. A Trump administration official said
ahead of the Oval Office meeting that the U.S. will make “informed”
decisions based on Iraq’s efforts to disarm Iranian-backed militias
inside its borders. The official insisted on anonymity to discuss the
administration’s strategy ahead of al-Zaidi’s visit.
Al-Zaidi has been called ‘Trump of the Middle East’
Iraq’s dominant parliamentary bloc called the Coordination Framework, a
coalition of Shiite parties allied with Iran, initially said it would
back former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whom the Trump
administration viewed as too close to Tehran. Trump, a Republican, got
personally involved, threatening to block support if al-Maliki returned
to power.
Since al-Zaidi's formal installation as prime minister-designate in
April, the Trump administration has kept up its outreach to ensure the
U.S. can wield significant sway in Iraq, particularly in extricating the
Iranian influence that is deeply entrenched inside the country.
The parallel backgrounds of Trump and al-Zaidi have also bolstered their
rapport. Victoria Taylor, director of the Iraq Initiative at the
Atlantic Council, noted that al-Zaidi has been likened to “Trump of the
Middle East” considering his business background and lack of political
experience.
“When you value business success, I think then it’s very appealing to
look at an Iraqi prime minister who is likely a billionaire and can be
really pointed to as a political outsider,” she said.
But Taylor added that “the reality is much more complicated,” noting
that al-Zaidi was chosen by the current political infrastructure in Iraq
and will be “beholden in some way to that system.”
“I’m not always sure that there’s a full appreciation of the challenge
that this prime minister will face in actually trying to really
dismantle core parts of the political system,” she said, noting the
obstacles that al-Zaidi will face as he tries to disarm the Iran-backed
militias or challenge political corruption.
[to top of second column]
|
President Donald Trump greets Iraq's Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi at
the White House, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, in Washington.(AP
Photo/Alex Brandon)
Underscoring the complicated competing interests that al-Zaidi is
confronting in Iraq, the new prime minister sidestepped a question
about Trump's remarks on the 2020 killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem
Soleimani.
“At that time, I wasn’t involved in politics," al-Zaidi said. "Let’s
talk about the future.”
Renad Mansour, director of the Iraq Initiative at the Chatham House
think tank, said he expects that “the U.S. will put significant
pressure on al-Zaidi” to move ahead with disarmament during his
Washington visit “and Zaidi will respond by saying, ‘But I need
support — intelligence support, technical support, armed support.’”
“There is a scenario in which, if the Iraqi government starts going
after these groups, they will also go after the government,” Mansour
said. “And this is a scenario that I think that the Iraqi government
is apprehensive about.”
Oil pipeline deal is set to be signed, Iraqi officials say
The two governments are also poised to finalize a significant energy
deal.
Two Iraqi officials said an agreement is slated to be signed Friday
between Iraq, U.S. companies Chevron and TI Capital, and Qatar’s UCC
for construction of an oil pipeline that will connect southern
Iraq’s Basra to western Iraq's Haditha and from there to the Ceyhan
port in Turkey and the port of Baniyas on Syria’s coast. The
pipeline is projected to carry about 2 million barrels of oil per
day. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they
were not authorized to comment publicly.
Neither Trump nor al-Zaidi elaborated on the pending deal publicly
during their Oval Office meeting, but the U.S. president said Iraq
has “tremendous potential" because of its oil.
Later, a senior Trump administration official said the U.S. is
“facilitating conversation” between Iraq and Syria on future energy
projects. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to
discuss private deliberations among the governments.
Al-Zaidi cracks down on corruption
Al-Zaidi received Trump’s blessing, despite the fact that he was
chairman of a bank, Al-Janoob Islamic Bank, that was among the
financial institutions banned by Iraq’s central bank in 2024 from
dealing in dollars amid pressure from the U.S. to crack down on
money laundering and funneling of funds to Iran.
Since taking office, al-Zaidi has made a public show of cracking
down on corruption. His government has conducted raids and arrested
dozens of current and former lawmakers and government officials
accused of corruption, including some affiliated with former Prime
Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
The Iraqi premier’s delegation to Washington includes a number of
Iraqi businessmen and government officials, and al-Zaidi’s office
said in a statement that the aim of the visit is to “strengthen
economic and development partnerships, attract investment, and
expand the role of U.S. companies in implementing infrastructure
projects” and to further develop the oil-rich country’s energy
sector.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
