Al-Maliki slammed for spitting venom

JEDDAH: Nuri Al-Maliki, Iraq’s vice president, has been roundly condemned for calling Saudi Arabia a “sponsor and supporter of terrorism.”
“Al-Maliki’s comments are irresponsible, especially since they come from a senior official of the Iraqi government,” said the Organization of Islamic Conference in a statement.
“His remarks contravene the OIC charter which calls for strengthening relations among OIC member states on the basis of justice, mutual respect, good neighborliness and noninterference in the domestic affairs of other member states.”
The OIC said that Al-Maliki’s claims, made on an Iraqi TV station, were absurd given the effective and significant role played by Saudi Arabia in combating terror and extremism at the national, regional and international levels as well as in the context of the OIC’s ongoing efforts.
The OIC stated that Al-Maliki’s statements were unjustifiable and ran against the spirit and principle of cooperation and solidarity among OIC member states.
“The statement feeds into a sectarian agenda at a time when concerted efforts must be made by all OIC member states to confront common challenges and to combat terrorism, extremist ideologies and sectarian divisions,” said the OIC.
GCC Secretary-General Abdullatif Al-Zayani described Al-Maliki’s remarks as “irresponsible, false and heinous ... they do not help to strengthen Gulf-Iraqi relations.”
Al-Zayani said the provocative statements fit into Al-Maliki’s pattern of sabotaging Iraq’s relations with its Arab brethren and cutting it off from its natural Arab surroundings with a view to serving foreign interests.
Al-Zayani stressed the sincere efforts of Saudi Arabia and other GCC states in the fight against terrorism, noting that these include their effective participation in the international coalition against Daesh, helping strengthen Iraqi defense capabilities to preserve the country’s unity, security and stability, and protecting its Arab people.
He emphasized the keenness of GCC countries to strengthen their relations with “brotherly Iraq after years of tension resulting from sectarian policies adopted and followed by Al-Maliki.”
Acting Speaker of Kuwaiti Parliament Mubarak bin Banih Al-Khiring also rejected Al-Maliki’s provocative statements, which “do not help the stability or build relationships between sisterly countries.
He chastised the Iraqi politician for leveling baseless allegations against a big and leading country like Saudi Arabia which is recognized by all Muslims for its support and care for the Islamic moderate thought and its enormous services to the two holy mosques and their visitors.
Meanwhile, the Iraqi leadership distanced itself from Al-Maliki’s comments.
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Khaled Shuwani, spokesman for the Iraqi Presidency, told Asharq Al-Awsat, said Al-Maliki’s comments were “his own and do not represent the opinions and official position of the Iraqi presidency.”
“President Fuad Masoum has made efforts and will continue to make efforts to establish and develop the best kind of relations with Saudi Arabia. He has previously taken this approach and will continue to do so, in full knowledge that this approach has produced positive results until now,” Shuwani said.
For its part, the Iraqi government, led by Maliki’s successor Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi, also distanced itself from Al-Maliki’s comments.
Abadi’s media spokesman Saad Al-Hadithi said: “The Iraqi government’s position has not changed with respect to is relations with other countries around the world, especially ... Arab and Muslim (countries), among them Saudi Arabia.” He said the current government had, since it was formed last year, adopted new policies “aiming to open up to other countries and based on joint interests and countering regional dangers and challenges.”
Iraq’s government has been attempting since last year to “turn a new page” with respect to relations with a number of countries in the region in order to solve “longstanding issues,” he said.
These efforts are based on “mutual respect and the non-interference in the affairs of either party.”
Al-Hadithi also pointed to recent visits made to the Kingdom by President Masoum and other Iraqi officials as well as efforts to reopen the Saudi Embassy in Baghdad for the first time in 25 years.
Saudi Arabia suspended its diplomatic mission and shut its embassy in Baghdad after Iraq, then led by Saddam Hussein, invaded Kuwait in 1990.
The Kingdom appointed a non-resident ambassador to Baghdad in 2012, but relations between the two countries remained strained throughout Al-Maliki’s premiership, which lasted from 2006–2014.
Gulf states accused Al-Maliki and his Shi’ite-dominated governments of stoking sectarianism in Iraq by enacting policies which marginalized Sunnis in the country.