As relations between Baghdad and Washington enter what many officials describe as a pivotal phase, the Iraqi government has selected an unconventional figure for one of its most important diplomatic posts.
Baghdad has nominated Ambassador Krikor Bakram Moses to serve as Iraq’s ambassador to the United States, according to an official document obtained by Alhurra and Iraqi sources familiar with the nomination process.
If confirmed, Moses, a member of Iraq’s Armenian Christian minority, would become one of the few diplomats from outside the country’s Muslim majority to represent Baghdad in Washington since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.
The document, issued by Iraq’s Foreign Ministry on June 22 and signed by Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmed Nayef al-Shammari, orders Moses’s transfer from the ministry’s headquarters in Baghdad to Iraq’s embassy in the United States.
Two sources in the Foreign Ministry and a third source in the office of Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi confirmed to Alhurra that Baghdad had formally nominated Moses for the position.
The nomination carries significance beyond a routine diplomatic appointment. Moses is not a product of Iraq’s traditional political parties, yet he is far from an outsider to the country’s governing circles. Over the years, he has served in positions close to the centers of power, building relationships across the Iraqi state—from the presidency during the tenure of former President Barham Salih to the office of former Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
Born in 1977, Moses attended Baghdad College before continuing his studies in Cyprus and later moving to the United States to complete his education, according to two longtime acquaintances who spoke to Alhurra. Supporters say that background gives him an advantage in navigating American institutions and understanding Washington’s political environment.
His experience inside Iraq, however, may prove just as important. While serving as head of the Directorate of International Relations in Sudani’s government between 2022 and 2026, Moses cultivated ties with a wide range of Iraqi political actors, particularly within Shiite political circles close to Iran.
People familiar with Iraq’s ruling Coordination Framework describe him as a pragmatic figure capable of communicating across political divides.
Two sources within the Shiite coalition—one a senior political leader and the other chief of staff to a prominent Shiite figure—told Alhurra that Moses maintains strong relations with both Iran-aligned political groups and Western institutions.
“He has good relations with forces close to Iran and good relations with Western institutions,” one of the sources said. “Most leaders of the Coordination Framework support his nomination.”
For supporters, those connections are one of the reasons behind his selection. Critics, however, argue that they raise questions about the role he might play in Washington and the extent of his independence from Iraq’s political power centers.
According to the two Coordination Framework sources, Moses is widely viewed as being close to the political outlook of Iraq’s ruling Shiite majority. They said some of his associates believe his positions largely align with that camp and that he enjoys backing from influential figures, including individuals close to Iran.
A source at Iraq’s Foreign Ministry told Alhurra that Moses’s family resides in the United States. Supporters view that as an asset because of his familiarity with American society, while critics see it as another factor likely to draw scrutiny given the sensitivity of the position.
Yet the debate surrounding the nomination extends beyond Moses himself to the nature of the job he is expected to perform.
Iraq’s relationship with the United States no longer resembles earlier periods when the embassy in Washington functioned primarily as a traditional diplomatic and political channel. Today, according to a source at the Iraqi embassy in Washington, much of the Iraq file is managed through U.S. security institutions, particularly the National Security Council.
That shift would place Moses, if appointed, before a difficult test: whether he can help reopen political space in a relationship increasingly dominated by security issues, or whether he will be limited to conveying and explaining Baghdad’s positions.
Abbas al-Anbouri, who studied alongside Moses at Baghdad College in the 1990s, believes the nominee is well positioned to articulate Iraq’s perspective to American policymakers.
“Krikor will benefit from his background, relationships and communication skills in his new role,” said Anbouri, who heads the Baghdad Riwaq Center for Policy and Planning.
A senior Foreign Ministry official offered a different assessment, arguing that Moses’s identity as a member of a religious minority could make him more suited to serving as a messenger or interpreter of Iraqi policy than as a political negotiator or decision-maker.
The official added that some decision-makers in Baghdad had preferred a political figure with stronger backing from the Coordination Framework and the government in order to maximize Iraq’s influence on key issues. Prime Minister Zaidi, however, ultimately favored Moses.
According to information gathered by Alhurra’s correspondent and corroborated by sources in Baghdad and Washington, Moses spent much of the past two years engaged in quiet efforts to bolster support for Sudani’s government among U.S. policymakers. He also sought to mitigate the impact on Iraq of regional developments following the October 7, 2023 attack and the subsequent war in Gaza.
Alhurra contacted Moses for comment on the information contained in this report, but he did not respond to calls or messages before publication.
A retired Iraqi diplomat told Alhurra that Iraq does not currently need to appoint a full ambassador in Washington and should instead maintain its existing level of representation.
The diplomat cited the principle of reciprocity, noting that the United States is currently represented in Iraq by a chargé d’affaires and a special envoy, making a similar level of Iraqi representation a reasonable option in his view.
If confirmed, Moses would replace veteran diplomat Nizar al-Khairallah, who currently serves as Iraq’s ambassador to the United States.
A source in Prime Minister Zaidi’s office told Alhurra that several Iraqi officials declined assignments to the Washington mission despite passing interviews conducted by the selection committee, citing the sensitivity of the current political environment.
Asked why the government had turned to a figure outside Iraq’s traditional system of political quota-sharing, the source said previous experience had shown the limited ability of ambassadors to move the U.S.-Iraq relationship beyond its security focus and toward a broader political and economic partnership, even during periods when bilateral ties were at their strongest.
Adapted and translated from the original Arabic.
