10 March 2007
U.S. Prepared to Work with All Iraq's Neighbors, Envoy Says
U.S. Ambassador Khalilzad stresses common interest in secure, stable Iraq
Washington – U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad confirmed the United States' willingness to work with any nation that supports the goal of a secure, stable and democratic Iraq during the March 10 Iraq Neighbors Conference in Baghdad. The conference brought together representatives from all of Iraq's neighbors, including Iran and Syria.
“There should be no exclusivity when it comes to harnessing regional and international support for Iraq,” Khalilzad told delegates in his opening statement. “The U.S. will work with any party that is sincerely trying to help.”
The ambassador told reporters later in the day that he spoke directly to both the Iranian and Syrian delegations during the conference but that no formal bilateral meetings took place.
Khalilzad said a secure and stable Iraq is in everyone's interest. “No country represented at the table would benefit from a disintegrated Iraq; indeed, all would suffer badly,” he said.
The ambassador said all of Iraq's neighbors could do more to support the country's transition toward stability, and he expressed the hope that all those present were prepared to take concrete steps in this regard. (See related article.)
“I urge all neighbors to categorically reject the principle that selective violence against certain categories of Iraqis or against Coalition and Iraqi security forces is acceptable,” he said. “Iraq’s neighbors can only be counted as providing true and honest support to Iraq’s stability if they act decisively to halt the flow of fighters, weapons, and other lethal support to militias and other illegal armed groups, and cease sectarian rhetoric and other propaganda that could incite violence.”
The United States has expressed its concerns in the past about Iran's provisioning of lethal materiel and training to sectarian Iraqi militias, and about Syria turning a blind eye to radical jihadists and former Iraqi Baathists using its long border with Iraq as a staging ground and point of entry for insurgent operations. (See related article.)
Khalilzad said he heard assurances from all the participants that they want to see an end to the violence in Iraq, and national reconciliation between the country's ethnic and sectarian groups, but he added that he would have to wait and see if those words are followed by actions on the ground.
The U.S. envoy welcomed Baghdad's proposal to establish three multilateral working groups to focus on Iraq's specific problems, including border security, the country's fuel and electricity needs and the growing number of refugees and internally displaced persons. These working groups will prepare reports and recommendations for a ministerial-level meeting to be held in April. Turkey has offered to host that meeting, and it is likely to include Iraq's neighbors, the permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and the Group of Eight (G8) industrial nations. The G8 member nations are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Khalilzad said it is possible that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice could have some form of interaction with her Iranian and Syrian counterparts at the ministerial meeting. Those discussions would likely be focused on the recommendations of the three working groups, he said, but might include other topics raised at the table.
A transcript of Khalilzad's remarks to reporters March 10 is available on the State Department Web site.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
