U.S. ALLY IRAQ TURNS TO RUSSIA FOR MILITARY SUPPORT, OIL DEALS AND NATION BUILDING (Source Newsweek)
Iraq’s vice president has reached out to Russia during a high-profile visit, saying he seeks closer ties with Moscow after 14 consecutive years of U.S. military intervention in his country.
During a visit to Moscow, Iraqi Vice President Nouri al-Maliki told Russia Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that Baghdad may be “prone to new political developments in light of regional interferences” and to avoid a “foreign political entity” from forcing its agenda, according to Kurdish media outlet” Rudaw. Since overthrowing Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and installing a new government in 2003, the U.S. has played a major role in the country’s internal affairs,  maliki-government-seriously-compromised-cia-operations-iraq-years-256353″ something Maliki has fought in the past. As Russia asserts its own influence in neighboring Syria, Maliki reportedly seeks to play Moscow’s economic, political and military power against Washington’s in Iraq. “Historically, Russia has close relations with Iraq. That is why we would like to see Russia’s visible presence in our country, both in terms of politics and defense,” Maliki said following a meeting with Russian upper house of parliament speaker Valentina Matviyenko, according to the state-run  HYPERLINK “http://tass.com/world/957581” \t “_blank” Tass Russian news agency. “It would create [the] balance the region, its nations and countries need.