U.S. envoy congratulates Iraq on provincial elections
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Alina Romanowski congratulated Iraqis on the provincial elections, which the country held on Monday.
“We congratulate the Iraqi people and the @IraqiGovt for a secure, safe, and peaceful election process,” the envoy wrote in a post on X.
Earlier today, the Independent High Electoral Commission (IHEC) released the preliminary results of the vote. Those results consist of 94% of tallied ballots, with the final results coming in a matter of days, Kurdistan24 has been told.
“Free and fair elections are essential for a democratic society to determine its future, and this week's Provincial Council elections highlight Iraqis’ commitment to democracy,” Romanowski said.
The elections in the battleground province of Kirkuk constitute a decisive victory for the Kurdish parties. They won a total of some 217,000 votes, compared to the Arab and Turkmen parties, which received roughly 203,000 and 93,000 votes, respectively.
However, it remains to be seen what impact, if any, possible modifications in the final tally might have on the ethnically disputed province.
In Kirkuk, 66% of eligible residents participated in the provincial elections, according to Iraq's IHEC. However, only 41% of eligible voters across the country, minus the Kurdistan Region, participated in the elections.
“We look forward to working with newly elected provincial leaders to advance the #USIraq360Partnership throughout the country,” Romanowski stated.
The ambassador has overseen a difficult year, as the U.S. has acted, sometimes reluctantly, to counter Iranian influence in Iraq. Such actions include the imposition last summer of a regulation on 14 Iraqi banks that prohibits them from trading in U.S. dollars, because Iran was using the banks to circumvent sanctions.
Read More: No Iraqi banks were sanctioned: US Ambassador to Iraq
Most recently, Iranian-backed militias have regularly targeted military bases in Iraq and Syria hosting troops, including U.S. forces, depoyed as part of the anti-ISIS coalition.
Read More: U.S. Cites Iran, as Militias Attack Numerous Sites in the Kurdistan Region, Iraq, and Syria
Those attacks increased significantly with the war in Gaza. As Washington’s Institute for the Study of War summarized the situation, “Iran and its so-called ‘Axis of Resistance’ are exploiting the Israel-Hamas war to support their objective of expelling US forces from the Middle East.”
The militia attacks produced strains in U.S. ties with Iraq, as Washington repeatedly called on Baghdad to take more effective action to stop the assaults. Most recently, the Iraqi government appears to have done so, to Washington’s satisfaction.
That development was reflected in a statement from Romanoski, welcoming Baghdad’s “commitment to pursue those who attack U.S. and Coalition personnel and facilities.”
We are encouraged by Iraqi government commitment to pursue those who attack U.S. and Coalition personnel and facilities. We also welcome the statements made by major Iraqi political forces condemning these terrorist attacks. Now is the time for actions and results.…
— Ambassador Alina L. Romanowski (@USAmbIraq) December 9, 2023
Thus, quite possibly, the ambassador’s praise of Tuesday’s elections suggests a broader improvement in relations between Baghdad and Washington, although that remains to be seen.
Editing by Laurie Mylroie