Iraq and Iran sign border security pact as US pushes against pro-Iran militias

Iraq and Iran signed a security pact Monday to strengthen border coordination amid political divisions in Iraq and rising U.S. pressure on pro-Iran militias.

12.08.2025

By Dana Taib Menmy

Source:https://www.newarab.com/news/iraq-iran-agree-border-security-despite-us-opposition

Iraq and Iran have formalised a new security agreement to improve cooperation along their shared border, as Baghdad faces internal political tensions and mounting US demands on Iranian-backed militias.

The agreement was reached during Ali Larijani's first official visit to Baghdad, aimed at strengthening bilateral security cooperation amid rising regional tensions.

Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani later received Larijani and oversaw the signing of the agreement, which officials said focuses on enhancing border security coordination.

A statement from Sudani's office underscored Iraq's commitment to fostering stronger relations with Iran, highlighting "mutually beneficial partnerships across various fields" and reaffirming Baghdad's opposition to what it described as "Zionist aggression against Iran." The statement also reiterated support for dialogue between Washington and Tehran.

Larijani conveyed greetings from Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and expressed Tehran's interest in expanding cooperation, particularly in developing cross-border railway connections for passenger transport and integrating these with Iraq's planned Development Road and broader regional trade routes.

This new pact builds on a March 2023 agreement designed to tighten control over the border area between Iran and Iraq's Kurdish region, following years of escalating tensions. The crackdown in the region has intensified since September 2022, after the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Iranian Kurdish woman who died in Iranian police custody after being detained for allegedly violating Iran's dress code. Her death triggered widespread protests across Iran calling for greater freedoms.

Recently, Iraqi Kurdish authorities have pressured several Iranian Kurdish opposition groups to disarm and move from their mountainous bases to newly established urban camps. One such group, Komala, reportedly relocated fighters from camps near Sulaimaniyah to a new facility in Surdash under pressure from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, which maintains close ties with Tehran.

However, this disarmament effort has faced resistance from armed factions within these groups. Some fighters have opted to return to Iran to continue guerrilla operations against the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps rather than relocate.

Iran accuses these opposition parties of instigating unrest inside Iran and collaborating with Israel's intelligence agency, Mossad—allegations the groups deny. Iranian officials fear that in the event of renewed conflict involving Israel and the US, Kurdish militants could infiltrate Iranian territory from Iraqi Kurdistan to provoke rebellion. The new border security arrangements aim to prevent such infiltration, with provisions potentially allowing the extradition of Iranian Kurdish opposition leaders residing in Iraq to face trial in Tehran.

Officials from some of these groups told The New Arab that they are still reviewing the details of the agreement and assessing its implications. Government spokesman Basim Al-Awadi and several Iraqi MPs from the defence and security committee were not available for comment.

US pressures intensify

Larijani's visit comes as Prime Minister Sudani works to consolidate his political position amid divisions within the Iran-aligned Coordination Framework, split between hardliners and moderates. Analysts suggest Sudani is positioning himself as a centrist broker between Washington and Tehran as both seek influence over Iraq's political and security future.

Political analyst Ahmed al-Adhadh told The New Arab that Iraq's upcoming November elections could be transformative, potentially elevating civilian Shia politicians in place of entrenched pro-Iran factions. He predicted that the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), an umbrella organisation for many Iran-backed militias, would be integrated into a US-approved security structure after the elections, which may lead to a "soft conflict" between Shia and Sunni groups over government power-sharing.

Al-Adhadh also described the Coordination Framework's split between hawks and moderates, with Sudani's new movement aiming to "restore balance to the US-Iranian consensus on Iraq's political process." He explained that the US-Israeli strategy under Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to reshape the Middle East by isolating Iranian proxies in Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen, while imposing a new political order in Gaza that excludes Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.

The Iraqi government has already taken a tougher stance on powerful militias. On Saturday, Baghdad announced it would prosecute Kataib Hezbollah members over a deadly attack on a Ministry of Agriculture office in south Baghdad on 27 July, which killed three people, including a police officer. The government also dismissed commanders of two PMF regiments, citing "failures in command and control."

Meanwhile, four Iraqi political and security sources speaking to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, The New Arab's Arabic-language sister site, revealed that the US has pressed Baghdad to dismantle what it calls "strategic weaponry" held by Iranian-aligned factions, including medium-range missiles and armed drones, warning of possible Israeli airstrikes if demands are not met.

US concerns focus on groups such as Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat al-Nujaba, and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, which have demonstrated the capacity to strike targets inside Israel and American bases in the region. Washington has reportedly also demanded the closure of the PMF’s military production directorate and the return of militia-controlled areas like Jurf al-Sakhar and al-Awja to government authority.

An Iraqi security official warned that the increasing pressure could lead factions to escalate tensions inside Iraq, potentially attacking infrastructure or clashing with security forces, as occurred last month in Baghdad's al-Saydiya district.

Diplomatic tensions surfaced as Iraq's Foreign Ministry summoned the British ambassador in Baghdad to protest remarks suggesting the PMF was no longer necessary following the defeat of the Islamic State group, comments Baghdad said undermined Iraq's sovereignty.