At UN Assembly, Iraq outlines vision for post-conflict reconstruction
Iraq is an independent sovereign federal State following democratic processes which have enabled all its people to participate in society, said the country’s top foreign affairs official at the United Nations General Assembly, expressing opposition to a referendum planned by the regional government of Kurdistan.
“The Government always encourages the cohesive status of all components (of society),” said Minister for Foreign Affairs Ibrahim Abdulkarim Al-Jafari during the Assembly’s annual high-level debate, noting that Iraq must preserve its unity and territory.
Therefore, he said, the Government has appealed to the Supreme Court to reject the referendum planned for late this month.
His country will hold its legislative and parliamentary elections in the first three months of 2018 aimed at consolidating political stability and economic progress.
He thanked countries that supported his Government forces in liberating Mosul and other cities from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL/Da’esh) terrorists. However, he said that “history teaches us that conflict goes beyond the challenges of war,” meaning that there remains a hard road ahead for post-ISIL reconstruction and reconciliation.
Da’esh’s so-called environmental terrorism destroyed the country’s heritage sites and its natural resources.
Iraq’s comprehensive vision for the future centred on restoring peace, providing basic services, allowing people to return to their homes and facilitating post-conflict reconstruction.
Among other national priorities, Iraq was re-establishing its national security forces and rule of law, as well as continuing to combat corruption, which provided fertile ground for terrorists and crime.
In addition, the UN Security Council recently mandated a joint investigative mechanism to collect and preserve evidence about ISIL actions in Iraq, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, he said, calling for necessary support and financial resources to fund that mechanism.