US President Donald Trump congratulated Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Ali al-Zaidi on his nomination on April 30, OKAZ reported, ending a four-month standoff in which Washington derailed the candidacy of former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki under threat of sweeping sanctions on Iraq.

Iraq's Coordination Framework, the largest Shia bloc in parliament, announced al-Zaidi as its candidate for prime minister on April 28, after weeks of internal debate over the choice between Maliki and alternative candidates.

"We wish him every success as he works to form a new government, free from terrorism, that can deliver a brighter future for Iraq," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "We look forward to a strong, vibrant and highly productive new relationship between Iraq and the United States."

Trump's congratulatory call to Ali al-Zaidi marks the end of a four-month tug-of-war that has reshaped Iraqi government formation in ways that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. Washington's January threat to cut off support and sanction the Central Bank of Iraq, the State Oil Marketing Organisation and individual political figures forced the Coordination Framework to abandon Nouri al-Maliki and settle on a politically untested banker as a compromise candidate.

According to a statement from the prime minister's media office, Trump invited al-Zaidi to visit Washington after the formation of the government during a phone call on April 30.

The call reviewed strategic bilateral relations and ways to develop and strengthen them across various fields, the statement said. The two sides emphasised joint work and bilateral cooperation to consolidate stability in the region.

Al-Zaidi, chairman of the Al-Janoob Islamic Bank, emerged as a compromise candidate in the final stages of Coordination Framework discussions. He has not previously held political office and has been positioned as a technocratic figure with business and investment connections.

Neither al-Zaidi nor Al-Janoob Bank is under US sanctions, although the bank was among several Iraqi institutions banned by Iraq's central bank from dollar transactions in 2024 amid US pressure on money laundering and on funds flowing to Iran.

The nomination follows Trump's January 27 threat to end US support for Iraq if Maliki returned to office, made in a Truth Social post in which the president described Maliki's previous tenure as a period of "poverty and total chaos" and called him a "very bad choice" for the country. The Trump administration views Maliki, who served as prime minister from 2006 to 2014, as too closely aligned with Iran.

The pressure escalated through February with what Iraqi sources described to Alhurra as a US threat message specifying sectors that would be targeted by sanctions if Maliki's nomination went forward.

The threatened measures reportedly included sanctions against the State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO), the Central Bank of Iraq, and security and diplomatic sectors, alongside political figures and current and former officials.

Iraq's exposure to US economic leverage runs through multiple channels. Oil export revenues have largely been held at the New York Federal Reserve under arrangements established after the 2003 US invasion.

Iraqi banks remain dependent on US dollar clearing, with the central bank already operating under tightened reporting requirements introduced under the previous Biden administration to constrain Iranian sanctions evasion through the Iraqi financial system.

Maliki initially rejected Trump's threat as a violation of Iraqi sovereignty and pledged to continue his bid. He remained defiant for several weeks before the Coordination Framework moved to a compromise candidate. Al-Maliki retains a leadership position in the State of Law Coalition and remains a significant power broker within the Shia political establishment.

Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, the outgoing prime minister, suspended his bid for a second term earlier in the process despite his bloc winning the largest share of seats in the November 2025 parliamentary elections. The Coordination Framework had been unable to choose between Sudani and Maliki, leaving the field clear for the eventual compromise candidate.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Sudani in a January 25 call that any Iraqi government controlled by Iran could not successfully put Iraq's interests first, keep Iraq out of regional conflicts, or advance the bilateral partnership with Washington.