Iraq goes courting in Iran

Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim Jaafari has taken the first important steps in the sensitive process of normalizing relations with former foe and rival Iran. His three-day official visit to Tehran, which ended on Monday, was “very important and significant”, say senior Iranian analysts.

Jaafari arrived in Tehran on Saturday, soon after his defense minister visited, taking with him a large political and economic delegation primed to rebuild ties between the two Shi’ite-dominated countries, which fought an eight-year war in the 1980s.