For years, rectifying this situation was not the primary focus of the West in Iraq, as it was instead focused on maintaining its military influence in the country following its removal of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Even after the U.S.’s ‘End of Combat Mission’ in Iraq in December 2021, Washington and its allies were content to keep granting waivers to Baghdad to keep importing Iranian energy, although its patience became increasingly strained during the first presidency of Donald Trump, also detailed in my lat ...