MOSCOW, February 20. /TASS/. Iraq does not intend to join any coalition or alliance in the Middle East, Iraq’s Ambassador to Russia Haidar Mansour Hadi, said on Tuesday.

“Iraq will never choose between alliances and coalitions. We are against any policy of alliances and axes,” he said, commenting on a hypothetical choice between the Russian-Iranian-Turkish alliance and the US-led coalition. “From the very start of the Syrian crisis, Iraq’s position has been absolutely clear - we call for a peaceful solution to the crisis.”
According to the Iraqi diplomat, his country wants a balance in relations with its partners. “We have special relations with Russia, Iran and Turkey, and strategic relations with the Americans,” the Iraqi diplomat said. “Iraq seeks a balance in its relations. The country has confirmed its capability to balance relations with countries, so, we will not have to choose. Iraq works constructively with everyone.”

Similarly, Hadi stressed that Iraq is against foreign interference in crises. “We believe that external interference only complicates the situation,” he said. “From the first days of the Syrian crisis, we have been saying that foreign interference would trigger confrontation. And this is what has happened, terrorist groups now in Syria are the result of foreign meddling. That is why Iraq will always stand for a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis, for preserving that country’s territorial integrity and saving the lives of its people.”
He said that amid all the turbulence in the Middle East, Iraq wanted to play a positive role in stabilizing the situation. “Iraq wants to have a positive role in stabilization in the region,” he said, adding that the Middle East “is on fire today and Iraq has suffered from these crises.”