Member of the Parliamentary Security and Defense Committee, Shirwan Jamal, today, Thursday, explained the reasons for the delay in concluding the Iraqi contract for air defense systems with South Korea.
Jamal mentioned in a press interview that "the violations targeting Iraqi airspace are not new," pointing out that "Iraq had concluded a contract with South Korea to purchase air defense systems, but the Iraqi side failed to fulfill its financial obligations to the other party, which affected the contracting process."
He added that "there is a tendency to contract with another country to supply Iraq with air defense systems," noting "the lack of sufficient information regarding the identity of the country Iraq could contract with or the nature of the systems that will equip the country."
Jamal indicated that "the financial challenges Iraq is currently facing should not be an excuse to leave Iraqi airspace and national sovereignty without air defense systems," explaining that "protecting the airspace represents a security priority that cannot be neglected due to a shortage of financial allocations."
Jamal emphasized the "necessity for the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces to prioritize equipping the country with advanced air defense systems, which will contribute to enhancing monitoring and interception capabilities and protecting Iraqi airspace from violations."
The government remains silent regarding the American and Israeli violations of sovereignty and breaches of Iraqi airspace, raising many questions about Baghdad's stance on this silence amid parliamentary and popular demands for urgent action to put an end to these violations.