Shafaq News
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, who took office in May,met US President Donald Trump and American officials in Washington this week onhis first foreign visit, centering talks on oil, electricity, infrastructure,technology, and investment. Political and economic figures told Shafaq News thevisit has raised hopes in Baghdad for a new phase of economic engagement,cautioning that its success will depend on whether the agreements reached turninto projects with visible results rather than paper commitments.
"Many within Iraq's political spectrum had been waitingfor al-Zaidi's visit, especially as Iraq and the region are witnessing majordevelopments that affect services and social and living conditions,"political researcher Imad al-Musafir, who is close to the Shiite CoordinationFramework (CF), the largest bloc in Iraq's parliament, told Shafaq News.
The visit's emphasis on investment partnerships matchesIraq's current economic priorities, he explained, arguing that cooperation withUS companies could help address some of the country's longstanding challenges.
For al-Musafir, however, the value of any agreement willdepend on what follows the signing ceremonies. "Signing memorandums ofunderstanding and contracts is not the objective itself. The objective is tosee something tangible on the ground, because some previous agreements had nopractical impact and remained only ink on paper," he added.
He also viewed al-Zaidi's economic background as a potentialadvantage in pursuing investment opportunities, hoping that his experiencecould have a positive impact on "Iraq's reality."
Economic researcher Ahmed Eid shifted attention to anotherkey issue: whether Iraq can create the conditions required to convinceinvestors to commit their money.
Foreign companies, he explained, look beyond governmentcommitments and assess factors including the strength of the private sector,legal protections, and the broader business environment, arguing that improvinginvestor confidence requires tackling longstanding obstacles, includingcorruption and weak transparency.
"Recovering public funds lost to corruption and holdingthose responsible accountable is crucial," Eid added, noting that suchmeasures would help strengthen confidence among international companies.
If economic partnerships are accompanied by broader reforms,Eid believes they could support better services, job creation, and strongergrowth. Without those changes, however, agreements could face difficulties inproducing meaningful results.
Energy remains one of the central areas where Baghdad hopesto deepen cooperation with Washington, particularly through greater involvementfrom US companies in oil production and electricity projects.
"The economic agreements that will be signed, based ontheir content, can have a positive impact on Iraq and Iraqi society," Fahdal-Jubouri, a political figure from the National Wisdom (Al-Hikma) movement ledby Ammar al-Hakim, told Shafaq News.
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Cautioning that the impact of the agreements would onlybecome clear once implementation begins, he pointed to the energy fund and oilcompanies as areas that could benefit the Iraqi people once the necessaryprocedures are completed. The fund is a proposed Iraq-US Energy and DevelopmentFund that Baghdad plans to finance with oil-export revenues to supportelectricity and infrastructure projects, according to Shafaq News.
The composition of al-Zaidi's delegation also reflected theeconomic nature of the visit, according to independent politician Iyadal-Janabi, who viewed the participation of businessmen and investors as asignal that Baghdad seeks to develop long-term economic ties with Washington.
"The message was that Iraq wants to be a strategic andeconomic partner of the United States," he explained, citing Iraq'sgeographic position and economic potential as factors encouraging deeperengagement with Washington.
He also connected the economic focus of the visit to Iraq'sbroader need for foreign capital and investment, calling for efforts to developinfrastructure, strengthen productive sectors, and expand oil export capacity,including through more diversified export routes.
For al-Janabi, the next stage will determine whether theWashington agreements mark a new phase in economic cooperation or becomeanother set of commitments awaiting implementation.
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Written and edited by Shafaq News staff.