US Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida said on Wednesday that Qasem
Soleimani was the co-creator of the election of Iraq’s new President Barham Salih.
Regarding the selection of a new president and prime
minister in Iraq, Rubio, who unsuccessfully ran for the US presidency in 2016, posted on his Twitter account, “The clear winner is Iran. IRGC leader
Soleimani personally brokered this deal. This is a major & troubling
development."
This article is wrong in claiming that the selection of new Iraqi PM & President leaves no clear winner between #Iran & U.S.. The clear winner is Iran. IRGC leader Soleimani personally brokered this deal. This is a major & troubling development. https://t.co/2zJV7EKjOv
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 3, 2018
Soleimani, the leader of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, drew up the agreement of his choice, Rubio said, describing the agreement as a bad development and adding that the choice of Salih would increase Iran’s control over Iraq.
Salih, the PUK’s candidate, was elected president of Iraq on Tuesday night. After his election, he immediately received congratulations from the ambassadors of Britain and the US, as well as officials, including Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasimi.