Erbil: The host city of sports t ournaments - Kurdish Globe

The Kurdish Globe No. 276, Saturday, October 09, 2010 11
Iraq and its Kurdish Question will continue to
be an important foreign policy issue to the U.S.
- Sean Kane, Program Officer with USIP’s Iraq programs
Interviwer:
Wirya Rehmany
What is the place and
importance of the Kurdiish
question in U.S. foreeign
policy? Do the U.S.
and European counttries
have any policy or
strategy toward Kurds
as a nation?
The Kurdish question
in Iraq, and Iraq in gene
eral, remains important
to the foreign policy of
the United States. This
is especially because the
Obama Administration
sees unresolved Arab-
Kurdish issues as one of
the greatest risks to Iraq’s
stability. However, the
extraordinary amount of
attention and resources
that the U.S. devoted to
Iraq over the last seven
years will not be repeate
ed. This level of focus
on one country and its
internal politics is almost
unparalleled in U.S. histe
tory. Iraq and its Kurdish
Question will continue to
be an important foreign
policy issues to the U.S.,
but one of several priorite
ties rather than the No.
1 concern. In addition,
U.S. domestic politics
are turning away from
foreign policy and secure
rity issues to local issues
like the difficult economie
ic situation back home.
How do you see the situaation
of Kurds of Iraq?
The Kurds and Kurdie
istan Region have made
tremendous progress over
the last 20 years--espece
cially since 2003. Iraq is
now a federal country and
Kurdistan Region has a
high degree of autonomy
to manage its own affairs.
Iraqi Kurds also have sene
nior positions in the Iraqi
government and army. In
many ways, given the inte
ternational environment,
this is the best possible
situation for the Kurds of
Iraq. However, the overae
all environment in Iraq is
evolving as U.S. troops
are withdrawn. There
are major outstanding
issues between the fede
eral government and the
Kurdistan Regional Gove
ernment, including relatie
ing to oil contracts and
disputed territories. How
these issues are handled
could determine whether
the Kurds can be successfe
ful in creating the politice
cal conditions for another
20 years of progress.
How do you see the imppact
of the departure of
U.S. forces from Iraq on
the Kurdish region and
U.S.-Kurdish relations
in the future?
The U.S. forces’ departe
ture affects the strategic
situation of the Kurdistan
Region, which had hoped
to see a long-term U.S.
troop presence to help
guarantee its security.
In my view, the Kurdish
leadership took a very
strategic approach to the
2003 U.S.-led invasion.
Their challenge now is
to be equally strategic in
handling the departure
of U.S. troops so that
past achievements can be
consolidated. Kirkuk and
the other disputed territore
ries are very important
in this respect. The conte
tinuing lack of agreement
about the southern limit
of the entire Iraqi Kurdie
istan Region is a major
source of uncertainty and
tension today, and could
be a source of damaging
instability and even confe
flict in the future.
What will be U.S. policcy
toward the struggle
between Baghdad and
Erbil, especially conccerning
the Kirkuk
question?
In my opinion, the U.S.
message to Baghdad and
Erbil will be that these isse
sues can only be resolved
by internal agreements
among Iraqis themselves.
The U.S. will support
Iraqi efforts to resolve this
struggle, but is unlikely
to present its own plan.
In the near term, I believe
that the U.S., along with
UNAMI, will encourage
Baghdad and Erbil to este
tablish a political process
on their outstanding isse
sues once a new governme
ment is formed. If the
parties are willing to do
this and both sides show
flexibility on difficult
subjects like Kirkuk, the
U.S. would likely activele
ly support the process and
could be open to providie
ing some guarantees for a
negotiated agreement. If
the parties are not, U.S.
involvement on these isse
sues might become rede
duced over time.
What are your expectattions
and advice for the
Iraqi KRG (especially
on dealing with us in
the future)?
My advice to the Kurdiste
tan Regional Government
is to be fully aware of the
changing place of Iraq
and the Kurdish Queste
tion in U.S. politics. The
U.S. wants to help Baghde
dad and Erbil resolve
their issues and prevent
any repeat of past trage
edies. But it is no longer
the case that U.S. leaders
will be judged politically
on events in Iraq as was
the case three or four
years ago. As a result,
the policy decisions and
actions the KRG takes are
more and more important
in determining what kind
of long-term relationship
will develop.
Sean Kane is a Program
Officer with USIP’s Iraq
programs. Prior to joini
ing the Institute, he worked
as a Political Affairs Offi
ficer with the United Nati
tions Assistance Mission for
Iraq (UNAMI) in Baghdad,
Erbil, Mosul, and Kirkuk
from 2006-09. At UNAMI,
Sean worked on a range of
political issues including
advising the Iraqi Parliami
ment during the 2007 consi
stitutional review, analysis
of oil and revenue sharing
legislation, monitoring the
2009 provincial elections,
and preparing UNAMI’s
reports to the government
of Iraq and the Kurdistan
Regional Government on
Kirkuk and other disputed
internal boundaries. From
2009-10, Sean also served
as a Middle East Desk Offi
ficer with the United Nati
tions Department of Politici
cal Affairs, covering issues
related to the Middle East
Peace Process and supporti
ing the Secretary-General’s
participation in the Middle
East Quartet.
From 2005-06, Sean was
a Program Officer with the
U.S. government’s Millenni
nium Challenge Corporati
tion (MCC). At MCC, he
conducted economic growth
analysis and designed moniti
toring and evaluation systi
tems for Millennium Challi
lenge Compact proposals
from the governments of
Mali, Senegal, and Sri Lanki
ka. During the summer of
2004, he worked for the Offi
fice of the High Representati
tive in Bosnia-Herzegovina
on internal debt and propei
erty restitution issues resulti
ing from the 1990s conflict.
He was previously an Assi
sociate Lecturer/Researcher
with the University of the
Witwatersrand in South Afri
rica, and a Senior Research
Analyst at the U.S.-based
strategy consulting firm
Dove Associates.
Sean has written on the
subjects of natural resource
negotiations and Iraqi politi
tics. He has a Bachelor of
Arts from Bowdoin College
and a Masters in Public Affi
fairs from Princeton Univi
versity’s Woodrow Wilson
School. He has also studi
ied at the London School of
Economics.
President Barzani addresses meeting
of Alliance of Democrats in Rome
Full speech by
Massoud Barzani
delivered on 1
October 2010 to the
Alliance of
Democrats
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a pleasure to join you,
my fellow Democrats,
here today.
I often hear it said that
there are no universal
human values. That the
world’s people are divided
by cultural, ethnic, and
religious fissures so deep,
that common ground is
impossible to find. With its
tragic and long history of
dictatorship and conflict,
Iraq is often used as one of
the most prominent exampe
ples of these irreconcilable
divisions.
But I stand here today
to tell you that is not true.
As someone who has witne
nessed the darkest side of
man, who has witnessed
the attempted exterminate
tion of my people, witne
nessed the destruction of
almost every village in
Kurdistan, witnessed the
brutal slaying of women
and children discarded in
mass graves….
I can tell you that as hume
man beings we all share
some values, unequivocalle
ly: the desire to know that
we can sleep safely in our
beds at night; that our childe
dren won’t be cut down in
their youth because of their
name, religion, political
views, or birthplace; that
we will have opportunities
not afforded to our parents
and provide new opportune
nities for our children.
The question, however, is
how to pursue these values
and ensure their provision
throughout society. I bele
lieve Iraq’s history proves
to us the wisdom of the old
democratic adage that no
man can be secure while
another man fears. Security
must be universal. Which
means that while security
is necessary for the deve
velopment of our society,
security is nothing without
democracy and freedom.
Without the ability for all
to choose our leaders and
hold them accountable.
This recognition has alwe
ways been at the heart of
the Kurdish struggle and
it remains our vision for
the future of Iraq. It is why
we have fought so hard for
an Iraq that is governed
by laws and ruled by the
compromises embedded
in our Constitution. We
know from experience that
any movement towards a
winner-take-all mentality
will mean disaster, not just
for the Kurdistan Region,
but for all the people of
Iraq. While we may not alwe
ways agree with the decise
sions taken throughout the
country, we must learn to
respect the rights of people
to choose who will lead
them and how their comme
munities will be tied in the
federal structure to other
communities.
There are some who disae
agree with us on these value
ues. Who out of ignorance,
hunger for power, fear
of change, or plain evil
would like to see Iraq slip
back into the ways of the
past, but I believe that the
people of Iraq want their
leaders to look to the fute
ture. They want a security
apparatus that has strong
ties between itself and the
public - that is committed
to entrusting their human
rights rather than abusing
them. They want an end
to the abhorrent plague of
terrorism and radicalism,
which seeks to re-create
divisions in our society
and destroy our opportune
nity to develop.
We will not let those who
seek to derail the political
process succeed. We must
continue to build up trust
amongst our communities
by strengthening our instite
tutions and commitment to
the rule of law. We must
make it clear that minorite
ties and the vulnerable can
feel safe in our society,
that we will not only prote
tect their right to exist but
provide their communities
with the opportunity to
thrive. This means that eve
eryone in Iraq must have
the right to determine the
form and structure of their
government. We must
avoid all attempts to inse
stall mechanisms into the
political process that will
disenfranchise any compe
ponent of Iraqi society.
That is why I have been
willing to work with any
and all blocks in the Iraqi
Parliament that are prepe
pared to commit to our
values. We are fully prepe
pared to join any governme
ment in Baghdad that will
uphold the Constitution of
our country and work in
consensus with all groups.
In the end, it’s not about
the specifics of one particue
ular policy or person. It’s
not about oil, it’s not about
administrative structures,
it’s not about who is Prime
Minister – it’s about a basic
and complete commitment
to freedom, democracy,
and the rule of law. These
policies demonstrate to us
the intentions of the gove
ernment. We have fought
too long and witnessed
too many times in the past,
what “compromises” on
those fundamental values
leads to. The Kurdistan
Region since 1991 has
taken the road to democrace
cy, joined by Iraq in 2003,
and our people will not go
back. We cannot afford to
compromise on the very
nature of the federal structe
ture of the state – if there is
ever a need for a “red line”
it surely must be that.
In the Kurdistan Region,
we have come a long way
in establishing democratic
institutions. We have expe
perienced an economic
boom, begun to rebuild
our infrastructure, institute
ed protections for minorite
ties and the rights of our
religious communities to
study in their own native
tongues, and begun a proje
ect designed to increase
the transparency and rese
sponsiveness of our instite
tutions to the people. We
have passed pro-trade and
investment laws to attract
the world’s top business
leaders.
Still, we are just at the bege
ginning of a monumental
undertaking to re-structure
our society. For over 100
years, we were deprived
of access or participation
in our government. We
need culturally sensitive
help from other democrats
with the technical experte
tise to help us build up our
human capacity and instite
tutions. After decades of
living in a non-democratic
state, we are striving to
find private opportunities
for our people, not just
for our economic developme
ment, but also to provide
people with opportunities
independent of the governme
ment or politics.
We also have a long way
to go to shake off the viole
lence and abuse of our
past. Children in Halabja
are still born with deforme
mities and defects caused
by the use of chemical
weapons. Adults throughoe
out the country suffer from
the physical and mental effe
fects of years of violence
and dictatorship. Our socie
ety is just beginning a long
process of reconciliation.
But we are resolute. We
can overcome the bloody
past. We will no longer be
victims to our state. I am
proud to stand here today
as a committed member
of a global alliance of
democratic movements. It
has been a long and tragic
road to this day, but it is
the very difficulty of our
struggle that daily reminds
us of its importance.
Finally please allow me
to repeat my gratitude for
this invitation. I humbly
thank you for this opporte
tunity and ask for your
support to establish and
enhance bilateral relations
with the Kurdistan Region.
It is indeed an honor to be
amongst you today. Let us
all work for the day when
the ballot box is the sole
triumphant over all else
and everywhere.