Iran welcomes political progress in Iraq

Tehran’s Ambassador to Baghdad has congratulated Iraq for its political progress and said no state has the right to meddle in the Iraqi nation’s domestic affairs.

“We (Iran) welcome …the formation of an Iraqi government … a new phase has begun now and the necessary services must be provided for the people of Iraq,” Hassan Danaeifar said.

“Since the fall of the former Iraqi regime in 2003, Iran has been unconditionally supportive of any government that has come to power in this country,” Danaeifar was quoted by Mehr News agency as saying.

Former Iraqi premier Iyad Allawi has repeatedly accused Iran of meddling in the country’s political impasse over the formation of a new government.

Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that Iran respects the sovereignty of all countries, especially its neighbors.

After the March 7 parliamentary elections that failed to hand a clear-cut victory to either Maliki’s State of Law coalition or Allawi’s al-Iraqiya, the Iraqi political rivals struggled for months to decide who will lead the country.

In November, the political blocs reached an agreement that reinstated Maliki as premier, but gave the right to choose parliament speaker to the Iraqiya Alliance.