BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 19. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has said foreign powers are rapidly losing influence in what he described as a “new regional order”, claiming that the United States is seeking an “honourable exit” from the region.
In a post on X, Ghalibaf linked what he sees as changing regional dynamics to the legacy of Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.
“Dear Abu Mahdi and Haj Qassem! This is the fruit of your struggle and your blessed blood,” Ghalibaf wrote.
Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis was a senior commander in Iraq’s Popular Mobilisation Forces, while Soleimani commanded the Quds Force, the overseas operations arm of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Both men were killed in a US drone strike near Baghdad International Airport in January 2020.
Ghalibaf argued that the influence of external powers over relations between countries in the Middle East is declining as a new regional political and security structure takes shape.
“In the new regional order, the interference of foreign powers in relations between countries is rapidly diminishing; America is looking for an honourable exit from the region,” he said.
His remarks reflect Tehran’s longstanding position that regional security should be shaped primarily by countries in the region rather than outside powers.
Ghalibaf also referred to Israel in his statement, but the provided excerpt of his remarks ends before the relevant sentence is completed.
