Al Sudani before Militia Disarmament Test

Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al Sudani said on Sunday that his country “will soon reach the stage of disarmament with all its forces, and there will be no weapons outside the control of the state,” but his statement remains unrealistic, especially with the presence of many groups and militias that possess various weapons, and that are pursued by foreign parties, especially Iran, which cannot commit to disarmament because it will lose its influence and authority.

“The demands of Iraq’s Arab Sunnis are not impossible, but rather are a matter that should have been accomplished years ago,” Al Sudani said in a televised interview, referring to demands made by Sunni powers that arms be limited to the state and be withdrawn from Shia armed groups that have committed violations in the western region for sectarian reasons under the pretext of fighting ISIS.

He indicated that his authorities “will soon reach the stage of disarmament with all forces, and there will be no weapons outside the control of the state.” He explained that “the powers of the coordinating framework allowed it to find an agreed formula to frame the presence of US forces in Iraq in the future.”

The Coordination Framework Forces, which lead Sudan’s government and represent the political wings of Iranian-allied Shia armed groups, have embraced the removal of U.S. forces from Iraq, sometimes using military force and other diplomatic channels.

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi sought to disarm the militias, but he found resistance from many of the militias that carried out attacks against a number of his close associates. These groups expressed their absolute rejection of abandoning their weapons.

The outcome of al-Kadhimi’s efforts has not been large, with the inability of security and military agencies penetrated by armed groups to implement the disarmament decision, due to the presence of many complications and the militias’ infiltration into the Iraqi fabric.

Iran, on the other hand, considers the armed groups a card that can be used on the Iraqi scene to counter American influence. Therefore, it has sought in the past years to arm them to a great extent, to the extent that it provided them with drones.

The Iraqi Prime Minister noted that “ideas are currently being matured to reach an agreement that will frame the future relationship of the presence of American forces in Iraq.” He confirmed that his country no longer needs “foreign combat forces.”

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on January 17, Al Sudani defended the presence of US forces in his country and did not set a timetable for their withdrawal, stressing their importance in the fight against ISIS.

Since 2014, Washington has led an international coalition to combat ISIS, with some 3,000 coalition troops in Iraq, including 2,500 Americans.