WASHINGTON - Interest in Iraq has declined in Washington over the past decade amid growing “Iraq fatigue,” but the United States remains engaged in the country and maintains its partnership with Baghdad, Victoria Taylor, former director of the Iraq Office at the US State Department, said on Tuesday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Iraq Dialogue conference hosted by the Atlantic Council, Taylor told Rudaw that the strong turnout at the event reflected continued US attention toward Iraq despite shifting regional priorities.
“We have seen a decline in US focus on Iraq. There’s been a little bit of Iraq fatigue,” Taylor said. “But I think what today shows is that there is still quite a bit of interest in what happens in Iraq and the US-Iraq partnership.”
The conference brought together senior Iraqi officials, US policymakers, business leaders, and regional experts to discuss issues including Erbil-Baghdad relations, energy, Iraqi government formation, and US-Iraq ties.
Taylor also commented on recent remarks by US President Donald Trump, who recently told Rudaw that “with our help, he [Iraqi Designated Prime Minister] won, and we want him to do very well.”
According to Taylor, Washington played a major role in blocking the return of former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
“We knew that whoever was selected by the Coordination Framework would need to be a candidate supported or accepted by both the United States and Iran,” she said.
Taylor warned that Iraq’s next government will continue facing major challenges related to militia influence inside Iraq’s political and economic systems. “These are systemic issues that developed over decades,” she said. “It’s not something that can be solved overnight.”
On Kurdish issues, Taylor said the current US administration has been less involved in mediating disputes between Erbil and Baghdad compared to previous administrations. “I don’t think this administration has been as interested in brokering agreements and dealing with salary issues as previous administrations might have,” she said.
Still, Taylor noted that Washington continues engaging with Kurdish officials on key regional files, including Syria, the Iraq-Turkey pipeline, and Iraqi government formation.