From Tehran to Baghdad: Ahmadinejad will visit the Iraqi capital in March

So far U.S. officials say they won’t be attending any events during Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s planned visit to Baghdad March 2. And the Iranian president might make it easy for them to avoid the awkwardness of bumping into each other in the Green Zone–-say, at an embassy “Salsa Night” or the “Liberty” pool. Iraqis planning the itinerary say that their guest has asked to stay outside the fortified area in a riverside compound belonging to his official host, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani.

Ahmadinejad is expected to sleep over one night and hold meetings with Iraqi officials, maybe sign an agreement or two, and hold a joint press conference with Talabani. Naseer al-Ani, director of the Iraqi Presidency office (remember, there’s a president and two vice-presidents from the different ethnic and religious factions) told NEWSWEEK the plan now is to not rely on any U.S. assistance for security or other logistics–-though that could change.

A U.S. Embassy official said that America will offer any logistical help the Iraqis request–-as the Americans have when other dignitaries have visited. Iran and Iraq share a long border and many common issues and interests, so the embassy is treating it as a routine summit between two heads of state–-though the other neighboring rulers haven’t dropped by yet. Given that Iraq has traditionally had bitter relations with all its bordering nations–-Turkey is currently invading the north–-Iran is probably the friendliest neighbor to Iraq’s Shiite-led government and its Kurds, if not for its Sunni Arabs).

A remaining question is whether there are any guarantees that U.S. troops won’t spoil the party by arresting Ahmadinejad–-as they have other Iranian diplomatic guests who they accused of funneling assistance to anti-American forces. Al-Ani, stunned into momentary silence when asked about this, said, “I don’t know what to say. It can’t happen,” Yeah, probably not. After all, the Iranian president has already visited New York for a United Nations summit and made it out safely. He should be able to thread his way through the western contractors and U.S. troops surrounding the Baghdad International Airport.