Macron from Baghdad II conference: Iraq is a victim of regional instability

Shafaq News/ French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday reiterated his country's commitment to supporting Iraq's stability and security amid continuous violations of its sovereignty.

Macron's remarks came during a keynote speech he delivered before the Baghdad II conference in Amman earlier today.

Macron said that Iraq is a theater of violations and insecurity and a victim of the instability in the region as a whole.

The French president stressed that Iraq's security cannot be achieved without addressing the problems inflicting Iraq itself and its neighbors.

Macron said France upholds the link that brings the countries of the region together and works on bolstering green Hydrogen production for a better environment.

"I believe that what has been happening since last February 24 lends growing significance to the security and stability agenda that we first adopted in August last year," he said, referring to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

He cited reforming education and health sectors, creating jobs for youths and establishing joint industrial zones to entrench security and stability in the region.

"We were by your side a year ago, today and next year," he said.

Regional and European leaders met in Jordan on Tuesday at the Baghdad Conference for Co-operation and Partnership to discuss Middle East security, bolster efforts to stabilise and rebuild Iraq and defuse tensions between key players.

The one-day summit brought together leaders and senior officials from countries including the UAE, France, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

This is the second time the conference has been held, with the first in Baghdad in August last year. The gathering was originally designed to exclusively support Iraq's sovereignty but has since evolved to include more stakeholders and expand its brief to include regional security.