WASHINGTON DC – On his visit to Washington last week Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi offered words that tremendously appealed to both the US government and business community.
Speaking to audiences in the US capital, Abadi argued that his government is non-sectarian and different from that of his predecessor, Nouri al-Maliki, who had been widely criticized for driving Kurds towards independence, sidelining Sunnis and being authoritarian.
“This government is different from the previous one,” Abadi told audiences in talks in Washington. "This is not a Shiite government, it just happens to have a Shiite prime minister," he said.
“Our government has successfully concluded a long-sought, interim agreement with our Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). This agreement provides for a fair sharing of oil revenues and the weapons and support that the Peshmerga forces need to participate fully in the fight against Daesh (ISIS) as a part of Iraq’s security forces,” Abadi added. “We are also restoring relationships with the local tribes in areas threatened or dominated by Daesh. I have met regularly with representatives from the provinces of Anbar, Salahaddin and Mosul.”
While it is true that Abadi signed a temporary deal with the KRG, facts on the ground indicate that the agreement has not been followed by action: the salaries of Kurdish civil servants are still months behind, the KRG treasury is empty, Kurdish officials still complain they lack proper weapons to fight ISIS; and Erbil is suffering financially from the burden of providing for more than 1.4 million war refugees and internally displaced from Syria and other parts of Iraq who have flooded to Kurdistan for safety.
Meanwhile, Iraq’s Sunni regions are suffering from indiscriminate bombardments by the Iraqi army and its affiliated Shiite militias. They have been accused of gross human rights violations, including random executions and the burning down of villages and towns that resist the Shiite militia advances.
Abadi also touched on the importance of free speech at a very sensitive time: only a fortnight ago Reuter’s bureau chief Ned Parker left Iraq following threats from Shiite militias, after reporting serious human rights violations by Shiite fighters in Tikrit earlier this month.
“Because a free society needs a free press, I have met with Iraqi journalists and dropped all pending lawsuits against journalists on behalf of the Prime Minister’s Office,” Abadi said in Washington.
Responding to a question about Parker, Abadi said he did not understand why the journalist had left the country, and added that the government had ordered more protection to the Reuters office – an unconvincing reply to an important question.
Trying to appeal to the US business community, Abadi said that his government is tilting more towards a market-based economy with a greater private-sector role: “It is our aim to provide help and encouragement to the private sector, and we have to remove bureaucracy and red tape.”
Those pledges would be welcomed by US investors in Iraq, particularly oil companies, which have consistently complained of red tape, administrative corruption and visa restrictions by Baghdad that have slowed down projects.
Before Abadi left for Washington international news agency reports said he was going with a shopping list of weapons and other defense equipment needed for the war with ISIS. But it appears that Abadi returned to Baghdad almost empty handed, with only a pledge by President Barack Obama of an additional $200 million in humanitarian aid to assist refugees.
Iraq’s top statesman also told the Americans that his government would grant greater powers to local governments. He said decentralization was a major component of his reforms, in the hope of keeping Iraq united as a single country. "If we don't decentralize, the country will disintegrate. To me, there are no limitations to decentralization," he said.
On the conflict in Yemen, where Iran and Saudi Arabia are on opposite sides, Abadi spoke for Tehran when he said that Saudi airstrikes in Yemen would only inflame the conflict.
"This is (an) internal conflict,” he said. It “doesn't help if you start bombarding that country. Does it reduce the regional involvement in the country or increase it? It's quite obvious it'll increase it," he told ABC news.
Despite Abadi’s inspiring words it remains unclear how he can deliver on promises: politically, economically and militarily he remains constrained by both his inner Shiite circle and by Tehran, Iran continues to play a large role in Iraq, ISIS is still in control of large swathes of Iraqi territory and the Kurds remain victims of Baghdad's economic warfare.
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