Iraq's new PM Ali al-Zaidi visits Washington to convince Trump administration on disarming Iran-backed militias

WASHINGTON — This week, newly appointed Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi arrives for his first visit to Washington and a highly anticipated meeting with US President Donald Trump. Buoyed by early, strong US support for his premiership, al-Zaidi is expected to emphasize his readiness to disarm Iran-backed militias in Iraq and to sign a flurry of deals with US energy companies. Both elements are core to a Trump administration agenda in Iraq, which is not motivated by historical obligation and is more narrowly scoped to near-term US security and economic goals.

In the wake of the Iran war and its disastrous impact on Iraq, al-Zaidi leads a country facing perilous security and economic challenges at home and a fraught foreign policy landscape abroad. As a businessman with no prior political experience, he is branding himself as a political outsider and a tycoon—"the Trump of the Middle East," as Iraqi insiders have described him to me. Yet, as he attempts to address US demands and keep Iraq on the right course, he is likely to confront blowback both from Iran and from the very Iraqi political system that elevated him to office.

The United States can either remain a supportive partner to Iraq's stability or a source of unremitting pressure on the Iraqi state. Al-Zaidi must not only convince Trump that he is willing and able to meet several important US demands, but also that Iraq remains critical to US national interests and is worthy of continued partnership with Washington.

High Expectations

Al-Zaidi was nominated by the Coordination Framework, a loose coalition of Shia parties, in late April, and he and his partial cabinet were confirmed on May 14. He was a surprise compromise candidate, the first non-politician to become prime minister in Iraq. He emerged as the pick following the gridlock created by the effective US veto of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's nomination.

In Iraq, al-Zaidi has publicly touted his visit to Washington as his first foreign trip, an attempt to signal the importance of the US relationship to Iraq, but also to solidify his support from the Trump administration. Already in his short tenure, he has been granted several early boosts from the Trump team, including calls from Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, as well as a positive statement from Special Envoy Tom Barrack that praised al-Zaidi's "fresh leadership" and "bold new agenda."

An Impossible Balancing Act

As al-Zaidi attempts to pitch his premiership as representing a new and potentially more pro-American direction in Iraqi foreign policy, his visit comes only days after public funeral proceedings in Iraq for former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Al-Zaidi himself and a coterie of Iraqi politicians—Shia, Sunni, Kurd, and Christian—took part in the funeral proceedings, traveling to Najaf to meet the casket of the leader killed in the opening moments of the US and Israeli war against Iran. They were joined by throngs of Iraqi mourners, demonstrating the deep religious and cultural power Iran continues to wield within the country.

The awkward juxtaposition of these events is emblematic of the competition for influence in Iraq. Successive prime ministers have attempted to balance Iraqi foreign policy between the country's symbiotic relationship with Iran and its continued strategic cooperation with the United States. The Iran war this year has made that balancing act—always a precarious one—increasingly untenable. Undermining Iran's grip is the animating motivation of US policy in Iraq, meaning al-Zaidi will face tough choices.

A Transactional Agenda

Most immediately, al-Zaidi faces the high-risk, high-reward meeting with Trump that has confounded a number of other world leaders. For this particular meeting, form may matter more than substance. Al-Zaidi needs to charm Trump and give him the confidence that the United States is putting its weight behind the right partner.