UN chief travels to Iraq first time in six years

 After a protracted political crisis in the nation, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres made his first trip to Iraq in six years on Tuesday.

The United Nations is fully committed to assisting in the consolidation of the institutions in this country, according to Guterres, who stated that he wished to show "solidarity with the people and the democratic institutions of Iraq."

He did, though, say that he was "sure that Iraqis would be able to overcome the barriers and problems they still face through an open and inclusive discourse."

Having arrived in Baghdad overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, Guterres is scheduled to meet with the prime minister, Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, as well as members of youth and women's rights organizations, on Wednesday.

He will travel to a camp for refugees in the country's north on Thursday before traveling to Irbil to meet with officials from the Iraqi Kurdistan regional authority.

The summit of the Least Developed Countries will be held in Qatar, where he will subsequently continue his journey.