26 April 2006
Rice Visits Baghdad To Consult New Iraqi Leaders
Secretary of state reviews operations, capacity at U.S. Embassy
By David Shelby
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington – Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made an unannounced visit to Baghdad April 26 to consult with Iraq’s newly chosen government officials and review operations at the U.S. Embassy to ensure it is in a position to provide the new Iraqi government with the support it needs.
Rice told a reporter in Baghdad that she found Prime Minister-Designate Jawad al-Maliki a “very impressive” and “very focused” man. She said, “He talked a lot about the need to establish trust between various Iraqi communities and to have a government of national unity.”
Rice told reporters en route to Baghdad that the formation of the new national unity government is a “turning point,” saying it “gives Iraq now a real chance to deal with the obviously very vexing problems that it has faced.” (See related article.)
The broad, representative nature of the government is a blow to efforts by Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi “to separate the Iraqis and to turn them against one another,” she said.
She told one reporter that all of Iraq’s communities can now see the political process as an effective way to pursue their interests.
“[I]t's a very hopeful sign to talk with the Sunnis who are now very integrated into the political process, have very senior roles in the new government and to expect that as a result -- not immediately, and I don't want to give the impression that the violence will end immediately -- but that over time the political process will come to be the way that Iraqis deal with their differences,” she said.
Rice said that even as Iraqi political leaders negotiated over candidates for the key posts of prime minister, president and speaker of parliament over the past few months, they have spent a lot of time developing a program and rules for governance.
She told reporters en route to Baghdad that she believes the new Iraqi leaders will take a nonsectarian approach to filling ministerial posts.
“I think they understand … the importance of appointing ministers and subordinates who have a reputation for technical competence and a mindset that is nonsectarian,” she said. She added, “[T]hey know that that's the only way that they can govern the country.”
Al-Maliki has 30 days to select a Cabinet of ministers and submit it to parliament for approval.
Rice’s trip was timed to coincide with a surprise visit by U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Rice said it was important for both she and Rumsfeld to be in Iraq in order to coordinate political and military efforts in support of the new government.
“[A]s we look more at the transfer of responsibilities … to the Iraqis, we just want to make sure that there are no seams between what we're doing politically and what we're doing militarily. And so this is a good time for us to go out and have joint efforts, joint briefings, joint discussions with our people, so that we can make certain that those political-military links are very strong,” she said.
Rice said she would review staffing and operations at the U.S. Embassy to ensure that it has adequate resources to provide technical support to the Iraqi ministries and the new provincial reconstruction teams (PRTs).
The PRTs are support offices located throughout the country and staffed with political, economic, security and development experts providing services and advice to local and provincial governments. There are currently four PRTs operating in the provinces and a fifth opening in Baghdad.
A transcript of Rice’s briefing en route to Baghdad is available on the State Department Web site, as are transcripts of Rice’s interviews in Baghdad:
• Interview With James Rosen, FOX,
• Interview With Ryan Chilcote, CNN, and
• Interview With Thalia Assuras of CBS.
For additional information, see Iraq Update.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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