-Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki heads to Moscow on Monday to boost defense and trade ties, but events in Syria loom large over talks between two states criticized over their support for Damascus.

Maliki’s visit, his first to Russia in three and a half years, comes with Baghdad and Moscow accused of helping prop up embattled President Bashar al-Assad during a 19-month uprising which has left more than 31,000 dead.


The two countries have persistently called for a political solution to the conflict, and have avoided explicitly pushing for Assad to give up power as Western and Arab powers have argued for.


“The stance of Iraq calls for finding a political solution to the Syrian crisis, and it is opposed to violence ... for solving the crisis,” Maliki said in a recent television interview, according to AFP.


“Iraq has not intervened in Syria on behalf of the regime’s interests, or for the interests of the armed opposition,” he continued.


Iraq has pushed its own proposals for ending the conflict by calling for an end to violence by all parties, the holding of new elections and the formation of a transitional government in Syria, with which it shares a 600-kilometre (375-mile) border.

Iraq started asking Syria-bound Iranian planes to land in Baghdad for inspections last week, after promising Washington it would carry out random searches to stop arms getting through to Damascus.


Authorities said they had made their first inspection of an Iranian aircraft on Tuesday afternoon and let it fly on to Syria after finding no weapons, according to Reuters.


Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari had promised the searches in response to U.S. concerns Tehran is shipping arms to its ally Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to help him fight an 18-month-old revolt.


Iraq has said it would never allow any arms to pass through its airspace to either side in the conflict.

Moscow, meanwhile, has used its veto power within the U.N. Security Council to block resolutions condemning the Syrian regime’s use of force.


“Syria will be on the negotiating table during the PM’s visit, they will discuss a way to solve the current conflict there,” said Ali al-Haidari, a Baghdad-based security analyst.

Besides Syria, Maliki will also be keen to solicit Moscow’s investment in Iraq’s fast-growing energy sector, where Russian energy giants Lukoil and Gazprom are already major players, and to boost defense ties in a bid to help improve Baghdad’s fledgling security forces.


In an interview with state-controlled English-language network Russia Today, Maliki said he would discuss “military cooperation, and efforts to address the equipment needs of the Iraqi army” during his visit.


“Our efforts are focused on anti-air equipment, and equipment related to fighting terror,” he added.