Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Iran will not allow Western powers led by the United States to determine its future. In remarks reported on August 21, 2026, he said Tehran and Baghdad share a common determination to prevent foreign powers from deciding their destinies, a position he said has strengthened ties between Iran and Iraq.

Ghalibaf called on Iraq to turn the two countries’ longstanding political and security cooperation into tangible economic development and shared prosperity. He said the presence of large numbers of people reflected the depth of the brotherly relationship between the peoples of Iran and Iraq.

He described Iran-Iraq relations as rooted in geography, history and shared religious beliefs. Ghalibaf said the two nations would be remembered as countries that refused to become footnotes to another party’s narrative and whose futures were not written in Western capitals.