Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza: The total number of Palestinians killed due to famine and malnutrition has risen to 313, including 119 children
Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip: 10 people, including two children, have died of starvation in the past 24 hours
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: US envoy Tom Barrack cancels his visit to Tyre and al-Khiam amid popular protests
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Lebanon: Israeli occupation forces carried out an explosion in the southern border town of Kfar Kila
Russian Ministry of Defense: 37 Ukrainian drones destroyed in 4 hours over regions of Russia and the Black Sea.
Sheikh Qassem: Our supporters make up more than half of Lebanon's population, and all of these people are united under the banner of protecting Lebanon, its Resistance, its people, and its integrity.
Sheikh Qassem: There will be no phased handing in of our arms. [The Israelis] must first enact the agreement before we start talking about a defensive strategy.
Sheikh Qassem: Be brave in the face of foreign pressures, and we will be by your side in this stance.
Sheikh Qassem: Stripping us of our arms is like stripping us of our very soul, and this will prompt us to show them our might.
Sheikh Qassem: We will not abandon our arms, for they gave us dignity; we will not abandon our arms, for they protect us against our enemy.

Iraq can defend itself, no need for foreign combat forces: PM Sudani

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 14 Jan 2023 12:32
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

Energy-starved Germany receives the Iraqi Prime Minister to discuss gas trade.

  • x
  • Iraq can defend itself, no need of foreign combat forces: PM Sudani
    Iraq's Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani (L) and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (R) give a joint press conference at the Chancellery in Berlin on January 13, 2023 (AFP)

On his trip to Berlin to discuss bilateral cooperation in various fields, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani says his country does not need foreign combat forces on its soil.

Speaking in a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday, Sudani said that the Iraqi security forces are more than capable of defeating terrorism and that his country does not need combat forces from the international coalition.

According to the prime minister, Baghdad is re-evaluating the size and type of remaining advisory forces that remain in the country.

Approximately 2,500 US troops remain inside the Arab country on an "advisory" mission, according to Washington. In July 2021, US President Joe Biden and Iraq's then-Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi declared that the US mission in Iraq would shift from combat to "advisory" by the end of the year.

Read next: General Soleimani, the revolutionary, the martyr, the legend

Following the assassination of Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy head of the Popular Mobilization Units, and the region's anti-terror commander, Iranian Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, in 2020, Iraqi lawmakers ratified a bill requiring the government to withdraw all foreign military forces led by the US.

Iraqi gas export to Germany

Related News

EU will unite against Trump tariffs, but open to 'compromise': Scholz

Germany's Sholz says 'strong Ukraine' essential for Europe's security

The German official revealed that both parties have discussed gas import from Iraq.

“We also talked about possible gas deliveries to Germany and agreed to stay in close contact,” he said in the press conference as Berlin is seeking to diversify its energy resources.

However, no further details have yet been revealed on the volume of gas to be imported from Iraq.

With regard to energy ties, Sudani said Iraq wants to help meet global energy needs while also stimulating its domestic economy. He added that Iraq's gas can pass through Turkey before being delivered to Europe.

He suggested that German companies could aid Iraq with the problem of gas flaring because the latter lacks the facilities to process it into fuel for local consumption or export. Opportunities, he maintained, have been offered to German firms to invest in Iraq’s gas industry.

Read next: Energy crisis forces Germans to find heating alternatives: NYT

Moreover, Iraq signed a deal with German company Siemens to upgrade its power grid. The deal aims to increase Iraq's power generation by 11 gigawatts. 

“Iraq is already one of the countries most affected by the climate crisis, and the challenges will continue to grow in the coming years,” Scholz said, adding that Germany wants to help Iraq diversify its economy from fossil fuels and reduce its carbon footprint, including through the use of solar power and hydrogen.

It is noteworthy that in late December 2022, Wolfgang Kubicki, the Vice-President of the German Parliament, warned that Germany could soon become a dysfunctional, bankrupt state if it stays on the same path it is currently on and fails to deal with the ongoing energy crisis in light of its imbalanced financial policies.

"If we continue that way and want to provide energy assistance for years, then we could face state bankruptcy rather than state socialism," Kubicki told the German Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

  • Germany
  • Iraq
  • Olaf Scholz
  • Mohammed Shia al-Sudani
  • gas
  • Fuel

Most Read

Almost instantly after the Helsinki Accords were signed, organisations sprouted to document purported violations, whose findings were fed to overseas embassies for international amplification. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Zeinab el-Hajj)

How ‘Human Rights’ became a Western weapon

  • Opinion
  • 23 Aug 2025
Israeli soldiers stand on the top of armoured vehicles parked on an area near the Israeli-Gaza border, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Aug. 20, 2025 (AP)

Palestinian fighters target Israeli soldiers, vehicles in Gaza

  • Politics
  • 21 Aug 2025
Launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen toward the occupied Palestinian territories. (YAF military media)

Yemeni Forces announce firing hypersonic missile at Al-Lydd Airport

  • Politics
  • 22 Aug 2025
The ‘Arab Façade’ for Israeli occupation in Gaza

The ‘Arab Façade’ for Israeli occupation in Gaza

  • Opinion
  • 23 Aug 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
A scene showing an al-Qassam Brigades fighter during an ambush on July 7, 2025, in a video released by the al-Qassam Brigades on August 26, 2025 (al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)
Politics

Al-Qassam reveals Beit Hanoun ambush targeting Israeli forces

A Palestinian youth stands on a hill overlooking IsraelI Ofer Prison, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, Wednesday, July 3, 2024. (AP)
Politics

77 Palestinian prisoners killed in Israeli prisons since October 7

US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack speaks during a joint press conference with US deputy special envoy for Middle East peace Morgan Ortagus at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon, Tuesday, August 26, 2025 (AP)
Politics

US envoy Barrack calls Lebanese journalists 'animalistic"'

Tom Barrack's imperial tantrum in Beirut: When entitlement speaks (Photo by Mahdi Rtail)
Politics

Tom Barrack's imperial tantrum in Beirut: When entitlement speaks

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS