BAGHDAD: On Saturday, the Iraqi parliament appointed Nizar Amedi, a Kurdish politician, as the new president of Iraq. This role is mostly ceremonial and comes after the parliamentary elections held last November.
Amedi, 58, has served as the former environment minister and has been leading the political office of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) in Baghdad since 2024.
Next on Iraq’s agenda is the selection of a prime minister, a decision that is of great interest and importance.
In January, US President Donald Trump warned that Washington might withdraw its support for Iraq, which is a key oil producer, if former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was chosen to form a new government.
An alliance of Shi’ite political factions, holding a majority in parliament, has put forward Maliki’s name, raising concerns in Washington. This worry is compounded by recent tensions, as the US and Israel engaged in a six-week conflict with Iran, which has now reached a ceasefire.
In another significant development, senior officials from the US and Iran were in Islamabad on Saturday for high-level talks, marking the closest discussions between the two nations in fifty years, aimed at resolving the ongoing conflict.
In Iraq, known for balancing relationships between its main allies, Iran and the US, the prime minister holds considerable authority. According to the country’s sectarian power-sharing arrangement, the prime minister must be a Shi’ite Muslim, the parliamentary speaker a Sunni Muslim, and the president a Kurd.
