EU ambassador to Iraq Ville Varjola speaking to Rudaw in Baghdad on June 19, 2022. Photo: Rudaw
BAGHDAD, Iraq - The disputes between Baghdad and Erbil are linked to the government formation process, and it is up to them to solve the remaining issues as Iraq has gone through enough foreign interference, the European Union (EU) ambassador to Iraq said on Sunday.
“We [the EU] also do think this country has seen too much interference from other countries and we are keen not to get involved in processes where we think that local responsibility and local ownership is really key,” Ville Varjola told Rudaw’s Nwenar Fatih when asked whether the EU mission would assist in mediating between Erbil and Baghdad.
Varjola added that the issues between the two governments are rooted in the government formation process. “We’ve been observing with some concern the developments between Baghdad and Erbil,” he said noting that the EU would only interfere if it was requested to do so. “I don’t think there’s any other way besides the political forces, the national forces, to come together and find the solutions which Iraq needs.
The ambassador emphasized the need for an Iraqi government which is able to deliver the needs of the Iraqi people and those in the Kurdistan Region. “We need to have a little patience,” he said about the process which has been stalling since elections took place in October.
Varjola also spoke of the EU’s commitment to Iraq, given that the organization has provided 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion) to the country since the war in 2003 started. He stated that currently, the priority is not how the EU can help Iraq, but how the country can use its own resources to help itself, with the mission’s support. The ambassador stated that a 75 million euro package for social protection to support the Iraqi people had been recently approved.
With regards to the upcoming parliamentary elections in the Kurdistan Region, set to take place in October, Varjola confirmed that no decision had been made about providing a mission to monitor the elections as was the case in Baghdad.
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