ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is set to depart for Tehran on Thursday in an official visit to discuss strengthening relations, the Iraqi government said, days after the premier concluded a visit to Washington.

“The prime minister will visit Iran tomorrow at the official invitation of the Iranian president. He will be accompanied by a high-level ministerial delegation,” government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi said in a presser.

In Tehran, Zaidi will focus on “dialogues and understandings” on matters of trade, transportation, and agriculture, according to Aboudi.

The visit comes just four days after Zaidi returned to Baghdad from Washington after concluding a five-day visit to the US, where he met with senior US officials, including President Donald Trump, and oversaw the signing of numerous agreements.

Baghdad has long maneuvered a diplomatic tightrope between Tehran and Washington – the two foreign powers with most influence in Iraq – and has struggled to maintain balanced relations with the arch-rivals.

Iran took a dim view of the premier's US visit, with an adivsor to Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei censuring it as a “blow dealt to the dignity of the faithful and proud Iraqi people” and “a great disgrace to every Muslim and every free-minded person.”

“The gas file will also be on the table for bilateral discussions between Iraq and Iran,” Aboudi cotinued in his Wednesday remarks, with Iraq remaining highly dependent on Iranian gas to power its electricity grid and having suffered from supply disruptions amid the regional conflict.

Upon his return from Iran, Zaidi is set to make another official visit to Turkey at the end of July, with discussions on water being “among the most prominent issues” of his visit.

Baghdad has long accused Turkey and Iran of failing to release sufficient water into Iraq. Turkey has built major dams on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, including the Ilisu and Ataturk dams, while Iran has dammed and diverted tributaries that flow into Iraq, redirecting some rivers within its own territory.

Since taking office, Zaidi has led a renewed drive to disarm armed groups and restrict weapons to state control. The initiative is heavily backed by Washington, which has long pushed for the groups – many of which have strong ties to Iran – to be disarmed.

Aboudi, however, referred to the disarmament process as “an Iraqi matter,” stressing that it “will not be discussed during any foreign visit.”