WASHINGTON, D.C. - US President Donald Trump said Friday that Washington is “looking at” a candidate for Iraq’s next premier, offering no clear endorsement or rejection of Nouri al-Maliki’s bid for a third term. Maliki’s allies described the remark as a “notable shift,” after Trump had previously issued a strong warning against his return.
When asked whether he still maintains a veto over Maliki’s bid for a third term as prime minister, Trump said, “We are looking at a Prime Minister; we will see what is gonna happen,” adding, “We’ve got some ideas on it, but in the end, everybody needs the US.”
Trump’s comments come as Iraq’s political blocs continue negotiations to form a new government. The Shiite Coordination Framework, the largest bloc in parliament, formally nominated Maliki in late January. Since then, Washington has increased pressure on Iraqi lawmakers, with Trump publicly warning against Maliki’s return.
In a late January post on Truth Social, Trump described the prospect of a third Maliki term as a “very bad choice,” citing the “poverty and total chaos” of his previous tenure. Trump warned that if Maliki returns to office, “the United States of America will no longer help Iraq,” adding that without US assistance, Iraq would have “ZERO chance of Success, Prosperity, or Freedom.”
Maliki served as Iraq’s prime minister from 2006 to 2014, stepping down during his second term amid corruption allegations and security crises linked to the rise of the Islamic State (ISIS).
Following Trump’s Friday remarks, Aqeel al-Fatlawi, spokesperson for Maliki’s State of Law Coalition, told Rudaw that Trump’s comments carried “a notable shift," regarding the US perspective regarding Maliki’s nomination, saying, "Trump also clearly indicated that they are reviewing the options and that they have an idea.
Fatlawi on Wednesday said that several messages had been sent to Trump after his public opposition to Maliki’s nomination, urging him to reconsider his stance.
“The reasoning behind the nomination of Nouri al-Maliki has been clarified [to Trump in the letters], including his achievements during his premiership, particularly in the field of counterterrorism,” Fatlawi said, adding that “There will be no reversal of the decision to nominate Maliki for a third term.”