Emmanuel Macron in Iraq for a summit under the sign of the Afghan crisis – LCI

The summit, co-organized by France, had been planned for a long time. But the Afghan crisis, marked by a new escalation Thursday with the deadly attacks in Kabul, should weigh heavily on the regional conference scheduled for this weekend in Iraq, the occasion of a two-day trip by Emmanuel Macron. Especially since one of the main themes is stability and the fight against terrorism in this country long marked by the fighting against the Islamic State.

It is in this context of high tension that Emmanuel Macron was to fly to Baghdad on Friday evening, in the presence of a delegation comprising two ministers, Jean-Yves Le Drian (Foreign Affairs) and Florence Parly (Armies), parliamentarians and personalities such as the Nobel Peace Prize winner Nadia Murad, icon of the Yazidi sex slaves of the jihadists, journalist Caroline Fourest, former minister Jack Lang and Monsignor Gollnisch.

The head of state, who visited Iraq almost two years ago, will participate in a regional conference on Saturday with the aim of “support Iraq’s pivotal role in the fight against terrorism and for stability in the Middle East”, indicated his entourage to LCI, as well as to promote “the dialogue” between neighboring countries.

As such, with the exception of Syria, the main regional actors should be present or represented, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, King Abdullah II of Jordan, the King of Saudi Arabia, but also the presidents of Turkey and Iranian.

On the sidelines of the conference, Emmanuel Macron must increase bilateral meetings on Saturday, then pay a visit to the Shiite sector of the suburbs of Baghdad. He will leave the Iraqi capital on Saturday evening for Erbil, in the northeast of the country, before leaving on Sunday morning for Mosul, the second Iraqi city which had remained in the hands of the Islamic State between 2014 and 2017, before d ‘be taken over by Iraqi forces at the cost of heavy destruction. There he will interact with students as well as “influencers”, then show his support for Eastern Christians by visiting the Notre-Dame de l’Heure church. He will also visit the reconstruction site of the Sunni al-Nouri mosque, destroyed by Daesh.

The French president will support the reconstruction of the country, the rights of women, but also the fight against terrorism. “which continues in Syria and elsewhere”, and who remains “a threat” in the region, said the entourage. As such, he must discuss Sunday with the Kurdish authorities. “Even though the situation is very different”, “one cannot not think of Afghanistan”, we recognize at the top of the state. Emmanuel Macron will finally meet the French forces still present on the ground – nearly 600 soldiers remain engaged as part of Operation Chammal, launched in 2014 to help local authorities fight against the Islamic State.