Baghdad, July 21:Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki left for the United States Tuesday, in his first official visit since US President Barack Obama came to office, a spokesman said.
“Al-Maliki was accompanied by a large delegation to meet with US President Barack Obama and Secretary General of the United Nations (Ban Ki-Moon),” a spokesman from the prime minister’s office confirmed.
The prime minister “will discuss the latest developments in Iraq, US-Iraqi relations and investment opportunities for US companies in Iraqi reconstruction projects,” the spokesman said.
Al-Maliki would also petition Obama and Ban Ki-Moon to lift the United Nation’s designation of Iraq as a threat to international peace and security under Chapter VII of its charter, his office said.
The UN Security Council invoked Chapter VII of the UN charter in declaring Iraq a threat to international peace and security in 1990 following Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait.
Iraqi parliamentarians and diplomats have in recent weeks intensified their efforts to get the UN Security Council to lift the designation and return full sovereignty to the country.
This is al-Maliki’s 13th visit to the US since taking office.
Al-Maliki is set to meet with Obama at the White House on Wednesday. He is also scheduled to visit the US military cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, to thank US troops for their sacrifices in Iraq, the Los Angeles Times reported.
—-Agencies