Washington (Hatha al-Youm) - photo posted by the U.S. Special Envoy to Iraq, Mark Savaya, has sparked a whirlwind of political speculation regarding the next phase of Washington-Baghdad relations.
The image captures a meeting with President Donald Trump, featuring a vintage Iraqi banknote—the five-dinars—bearing the image of former President Saddam Hussein, placed conspicuously on the table.
While the exact date of the photo remains unverified, its timing and content suggest it reflects the current administration's fresh, "no-nonsense" approach toward the Iraqi file.
Savaya captioned the post, "A great day with the Great One," a move seen by observers as the formal launch of a "Shock Diplomacy" era, led by an envoy with a direct presidential mandate that bypasses traditional bureaucratic channels.
Political analysts argue that the presence of the long-demonetized currency on a table shared by the President and his envoy is no coincidence.
Instead, it serves as a calculated visual "shout-out" to Iraqi domestic players and regional powers. It symbolizes Washington’s desire for a "strong central state" capable of monopolizing arms and securing borders—a direct jab at the current state of security fragmentation and the dominance of armed factions. This move bolsters Savaya, appointed in October 2025, whose core mission is to curb the influence of Iran-backed groups and dry up their funding, while simultaneously opening major investment doors for American firms in energy and infrastructure. This puts Baghdad at a critical crossroads to balance its international ties.
Expectations suggest that Savaya will adopt a strategy similar to that of Tom Barrack in previous regional files, focusing on "stirring the stagnant waters" through high-stakes economic deals conditioned on comprehensive political and security stability. While Savaya’s mission is described as "extremely complex" given the deep-rooted anti-U.S. forces within Iraq’s decision-making circles, his direct line to the White House grants him the leverage to apply unprecedented "maximum pressure."
This public appearance, loaded with symbols from Iraq’s past, confirms that the new U.S. administration is ready to bypass traditional red lines and political sensitivities to redraw regional balances and impose a new reality, ending years of American foreign policy stagnation in Iraq.
