Opinion: Are Iraq's anti-corruption efforts getting real?

When investors look at the Middle East, most skip over Iraq without a second thought. But this is a mistake, given the stability and growth it is experiencing.

Investors may assess that the pickings are richer elsewhere. Iraq’s turbulent recent history forms the backdrop to such reactions: Saddam Hussein; two wars; a punishing sanctions regime in between them; more sanctions in place lasting after the 2003 invasion; reparations; the chaos inflicted by the reckless U.S.-led coalition administration; and the devastation inflicted by the Islamic State group, also known by its Arabic acronym Daesh.  

For outsiders trying to understand internal politics in the new democratic Iraq, the task is daunting. Meanwhile, the pervasiveness of Iranian meddling becomes visible — another negative.