Iraq anticipated a potential Iranian strike against the Kurdish opposition groups in the Kurdistan region, through tours conducted by National Security Advisor Qasim Al-Araji to Baghdad, Sulaymaniyah and Tehran. In March, Prime Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani’s government signed a security protocol for cooperation and coordination with Iran, on the sidelines of a visit by the Secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, to Baghdad.