State Dept: US supports democracy in Iraq

State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus
kurdistan24.net

WASHINGTON DC (Kurdistan 24) – It is “especially important” for the US “to promote democracy in Iraq,” State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus told Kurdistan 24 on Friday, following the first session of the US-Iraqi Strategic Dialogue, which was convened on Thursday.

The first session – a two-hour long meeting, held by video conference – was mostly formalities, an informed source told Kurdistan 24, and the Iraqi side merely read prepared statements. The intent of this first meeting, he explained, was really to lay the basis for further, more substantive talks.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) was represented in the session by Fawzi Hariri, head of the regional presidency office, and previously Minister of Industry and Minerals in Baghdad.

Ortagus characterized Thursday’s discussion as “very successful,” describing it as a “very pivotal first step in the process of a new Strategic Dialogue” between Washington and Baghdad.

“We hope to have the next round of the Strategic Dialogue this summer,” Ortagus said. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the first round was held remotely. It remains unclear whether travel will be possible for the next session, although we hope it will be possible to “begin meeting in person,” she said.

The State Department Spokesperson explained that the US wants to broaden ties with Iraq—to go beyond the military relationship and move “to the next level.”

“Now, we’re incredibly focused also on the diplomatic, the political relationship,” she stated, adding that there is also an emerging “economic and financial relationship” that potentially involves private American businesses, in addition to the US government.

Ortagus noted that the US has been closely involved in Iraq for nearly two decades—since the 2003 overthrow of Saddam Hussein’s regime. There were good reasons to overthrow that regime, rooted in traditional national security concerns, but the George W. Bush administration, believing the war would be easy, failed to explain them, as a senior Pentagon official in the Bush administration once told this reporter.

Read More: US-Iraq strategic dialogue to resume this summer

So two decades later, this experience is cited as concrete evidence of America’s enduring commitment to Iraq.

Importance of Good Governance in Baghdad

Among Bush’s errors was to assume that merely overthrowing a bad regime would produce a good regime.

The experience in Iraq (and elsewhere) has demonstrated that is simply not true, and Ortagus stressed the importance to the US of establishing good governance in Baghdad.

“We believe that the Iraqi people deserve to have the same sort of freedom and choices that the American people have,” she said, noting they had been “peacefully protesting for the right to have [political and economic] reforms,” as well as “accountability and transparency” in government.

“They wanted a more equitable system,” she continued. “They wanted jobs. They wanted things that people around the world want.”

Asked how the US viewed Iraq’s new government under Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, Ortagus replied: “There’s always a lot of hope and opportunity and excitement, whenever a new government is formed, and we’re certainly at that place, with this new government as well.”

She reiterated the importance to the US that Iraq “have a functioning and stable democracy,” adding, “We’ll do everything that we can to work with this new government.”

Importance of Exercising Control over PMF

Ortagus also stressed the need to bring the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) under control, while calling on Iraq’s neighbors, particularly Iran, “to respect the sovereignty of Iraq” and “the will of the Iraqi people.”

“What we don’t need is things like Shia militias that foment sectarianism, that try to drive Iraqis apart from each other,” she said.

“The United States is not interested in that. The United States is interested in bringing the Iraqi people together for a more stable and secure future, and we hope that Iraq’s neighbors will be responsible and work toward that effort” as well, she concluded.

Editing by Karzan Sulaivany