China, Iraq Slam IRGC Ban, Urge US to Avoid Destabilizing Region

"We hope that relevant countries, especially major powers outside the region, will do more things that are conducive to the peace and stability of the Middle East, instead of taking measures that will lead to further tension in the region," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said on Tuesday in a regular press briefing, according to Xinhua.

Baghdad also warned the US and its ally Riyadh that its actions will have "negative repercussions in Iraq and in the region", and that the move could further destabilize the region.

"We tried to stop the American decision. We reached out to all sides, to the US and the Saudis," Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi said in a Tuesday press conference. Any escalation, he said, "would make us all losers.”

The comments came after Donald Trump released a statement on Monday designating the IRGC “a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) under Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.”

In reaction to the designation, Iran labeled the US CENTCOM as a terrorist organization, and threatened that US forces in the region would not have calm anymore.

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