Baghdad: The Iraqi Foreign Ministry has disclosed that the United States threatened to impose sanctions on Iraqi individuals and institutions if leader of the State of Law Coalition Nouri Al-Maliki is appointed Prime Minister. In a press statement on Wednesday, the Ministry stated that Iraq received a "clear and explicit hint of the possibility of imposing sanctions on certain individuals and institutions" if Al-Maliki is assigned the task of forming the new government.
According to Kuwait News Agency, the US message outlined a set of criteria regarding the nature of cooperation and joint work for any future government and its working mechanisms. Last month, US President Donald Trump threatened that the US would no longer help Iraq if Al-Maliki was reinstated as prime minister.
The US President argued that Iraq "descended into poverty and total chaos" under Al-Maliki's previous leadership and "that should not be allowed to happen again." He stated, "Because of his insane policies and ideologies, if elected, the United States of America will no longer help Iraq. If we are not there to help, Iraq has ZERO chance of success, prosperity, or freedom. MAKE IRAQ GREAT AGAIN!" he concluded.