TRANSCRIPT OF JOINT PRESS CONFERENCE BY SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON AND IRAQI

PRIME MINISTER NURI AL-MALIKI, UNITED NATIONS HEADQUARTERS, 22 SEPTEMBER 2007

The Secretary-General:  Good evening, ladies and gentlemen of the media.  Thank you very much for your patience in waiting for this press conference, and I appreciate your participation, even though it is Saturday evening.

Today, Prime Minister Maliki and I co-chaired a meeting on Iraq.  Participants included Iraq and its neighbours, permanent members of the Security Council, the G‑8 member countries, major donors, Egypt, Bahrain, the League of Arab States, the OIC and the European Union.  Most delegations were represented at the level of Foreign Ministers.

There was a very positive and supportive tone from all the participants at the meeting.  And there was strong Iraqi support for an enhanced United Nations role within the framework of the new mandate in Security Council resolution 1770 (2007).  Broad areas for our future work in Iraq were outlined.

There was an emphasis by many speakers on the key United Nations role in helping to promote national reconciliation.  Neighbouring States pledged their support for a stronger United Nations role in promoting regional cooperation.  In this context, many speakers also stressed the need for strengthened border security.

There was a clear agreement that the international community cannot turn away from or ignore Iraq.  Its stability is our common concern.

Progress on the implementation of the International Compact continues in a very challenging environment.  The Compact remains an important framework for mobilizing political and economic support for Iraq.

The number of Iraqi refugees and displaced persons remains a matter of serious concern.  While neighbouring host countries have extended a helping hand to deal with the humanitarian crisis, their capacities are now strained to extreme levels.  It remains a vital task for the Government of Iraq and the international community to ensure that adequate assistance is mobilized and delivered to those in need.  The United Nations is already doing much to support and coordinate the delivery of humanitarian assistance, but more can be done.

The participants at the meeting also welcomed my new Special Representative, Staffan di Mistura, and appreciated the contribution made by his predecessor, Mr. Ashraf Qazi.  Many called for an enlarged and more active role on the ground in Iraq.

We face numerous challenges in Iraq, and today it was clear that the time for determined collective action has come.  This meeting has helped to promote a stronger partnership between the international community and Iraq.  The United Nations is committed to supporting this partnership.

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic):  First of all, I would like to thank Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for his efforts, which have been successful not only at this afternoon’s meeting but also at the Sharm el-Sheikh meeting and subsequent meetings.  They have focused on all the details and aspects of the International Compact with Iraq, in support of Iraq, which was suffering under a dictatorship and which today faces the threat of terrorism.   Iraq is thus a country that has assumed all the responsibilities on behalf of the world, in order to combat the most dangerous of phenomena:  terrorism, which has become widespread and which threatens the well-being of our people as well as developments intended to shape today’s world.

Today’s meeting of neighbouring regional States, Security Council Member States and industrial nations was a very positive one.  It highlighted the positive developments on the Iraqi question and the accurate understanding of all the challenges, as well the need for all friends of Iraq, friends of humanitarianism and friends of democracy to adopt common positions in support of Iraq, which is fighting this proxy war.

This was affirmed by all parties, in the light of what we presented concerning the economic, social and political situation in Iraq and in the light of the strides being made by the Iraqi Government towards economic, security and political reform.  In fact, the statements made by delegations supported our ideas for enhancing national reconciliation, which we consider to be the only way to impose security and stability, since security cannot be imposed by force but only through the goodwill that can be created only through dialogue and reconciliation among the Iraqi people.  National reconciliation requires major efforts and much time.  That is because it is not a question simply of horizontal national reconciliation; rather it is reconciliation that would come about through the creation of a common position and common principles upon which we want to build Iraq.

I found a positive understanding of the humanitarian situation of Iraqi displaced persons inside and outside the country.  But at the same time, I say that the improved security situation and improved economic situation have also contributed to the return of thousands of families who had left their neighbourhoods but who are now living normally again because of support and assistance from the Iraqi Government.

The meeting also praised resolution 1770 (2007), which gives the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) a central role in supporting the efforts of Iraq in all areas of national reconciliation, reconstruction, the provision of services and the provision of the expertise we need in order to review the Constitution, which we are doing now, and to develop Iraq’s capacities.  All of those pledges from delegations to support United Nations efforts aimed at the development of the situation in Iraq give the Iraqi Government significant impetus and give us confidence that we are not alone in tackling the challenges.

Concerning the overall situation in Iraq, I tried to explain to the delegations –- which were concerned –- that, at the present time, and in conjunction with the Multinational Force (MNF), we were able to improve the situation and prevent a religious war or a civil war.  Of course, there are still pockets of tension and there are still pockets of terrorist militias who are working in the shadows.  But they all fall under the power of Iraqi law and are pursued by Iraqi forces.  So, those are the results of the meeting and also an idea of what was said in the meeting, in favour of Iraq -– an Iraq which could live in peace, stability and security with its neighbouring States, an Iraq which will turn its back on its dictatorial past.

Question:  Mr. Secretary-General, Mr. Prime Minister, welcome on behalf of the United Nations Correspondents Association.  Thank you for having us for this press conference.

First question to the Prime Minister:  Prime Minister, can you confirm reports that Iraqi investigators reportedly have a videotape of Blackwater U.S. security forces firing on Iraqi civilians without provocation?  Can you confirm that?  And number two:  Your reaction to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice inviting Syria to a Middle East peace conference later on in the fall.

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic):  In fact, the matter to which you have referred –- and I think you were referring to the recent unfortunate event that occurred in Baghdad in Nisour Square -– is under investigation.  We have agreed with the American side to set up a joint investigation panel that will conduct the investigation, and to see whether there was a video that captured the incident.

Question:  (inaudible).

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic): Yes, Syria took part in that meeting and all meetings and conferences held, whether inside Iraq or outside Iraq.  A few days ago, we had a meeting in Baghdad and Syria attended.   Syria is also concerned with what is happening in Iraq because the region has become interlinked in its challenges.  In our latest visit, we managed to find a common ground with Syria and agreed to create positive relations.  Since Syria is hosting many Iraqis, and since it is interested in establishing a stable regional security order, it will certainly participate in the coming meeting.

Question (interpretation from Arabic):  Mr. Secretary-General, to begin, do you envision expanding the role of the United Nations in Iraq, and will an office of the United Nations be opened in southern Iraq?

My second question is for Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.  There are substantial challenges facing the Iraqi Government, and the most important one is the security question.  Terrorism is multifaceted, and it includes some of the religious opinions, or what is being propagated by some media trying to distort realities in Iraq.  Were these matters discussed, and what were the outcomes?

The Secretary-General:  Security Council resolution 1770 (2007) requested the UN Secretariat to have more of a role in Iraq.  I am now seriously considering how to increase our presence and our role.  Basically, the United Nations has a comparative advantage in political facilitation and promoting national reconciliation and also socioeconomic reconstruction.  These are the areas the United Nations will focus on in expanding our role there.

There is again the question of increasing our physical presence by the staff.  We will soon increase from 65 to a modest increase in terms of number of staff, as soon as the integrated facilities are ready, for safety and security of our staff.  We will have some more increase in our office in Erbil and we are also considering to have our own presence, even in Basra.  These are some things which we are now considering.

There was a discussion during the 9 September ministerial meeting, proposed by the Iraqi Government, to establish a support group.  During this meeting, I had proposed for their consideration to establish a small support office in Baghdad to help facilitate coordination between Iraq and neighbouring Governments.  There were very positive responses.  I had proposed that this one be finalized at the forthcoming expanded ministerial meeting, which will be held in Istanbul at the end of next month.

Question (interpretation from Arabic):  Of course, terrorism was discussed in general as a challenge, and that challenge -- which is not only faced by Iraq but also by the world -- has sources.  Those sources are sometimes in the form of amounts of money that come from non-governmental organizations, sometimes from Governments that pay amounts to certain terrorist organizations.  There are sometimes religious opinions, fatwas, which make it possible to kill and to shed blood.  That is a force that prompts terrorism because it is based on spiritual or religious foundations.

Of course, the press does not assume its responsibilities, and it doesn’t treat those issues objectively.  The press itself becomes a means of support, supporting those who carry out acts of violence.  Of course there are men who are prepared and who are pushed to kill innocent people.  Of course, we have to deal with that phenomenon, and we have to go straight to the source and dry up the sources of terrorism.  At the same time, we are looking at the mass media, which does not assume its responsibilities.

Question (interpretation from Arabic): Prime Minister, the national reconciliation in Iraq is a very important question with regards to improving the security situation as well.  My question is as follows:  what specific effective steps will the Government be taking in the future in order to bring about national reconciliation in Iraq?

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic): As you said, national reconciliation, and the point has been made before, is the best way to bring about stability and security as well as the sovereignty of Iraq.  As I said before, of course, it does not create peace.  It is understanding, concord, reconciliation that precisely will make it possible to build peace and security.  I think we have come a long way here.  A series of conferences have been held, attended by all components of Iraqi society:  heads of tribes, poets, religious leaders and others.

So, through all of these measures to bring about national reconciliation, we have been able to integrate some members of the army or pension others off, but those who are demobilized have to be compensated.  Vis-à-vis the past regime, we are trying to build a culture of peace and security, but to make this possible, we have stressed accountability and justice.  Those who have perpetrated crimes against innocent people and those perhaps who have been wrongly accused, we have tried to draw distinctions between them.  We have submitted this question to the Iraqi Parliament and we are trying to have a number of laws adopted.  We have tried to work on several levels.

National reconciliation, as you said, perhaps has not been achieved yet, or rather reconciliation will be brought about because a number of heads of tribes and a number of leaders have decided to side with the Iraqi Government and those who are involved in terrorist movements have decided to give up those movements and to join the Government to face terrorism together.

Question:  Mr. Secretary-General, the United States media says the arming of Sunni tribes in Iraq could jeopardize and make Iraq’s future more dangerous.  Do you agree?

The Secretary-General:  Will you repeat your question again?

Question:  The U.S. media says that the arming of Sunni tribes in Iraq could jeopardize and make Iraq’s future more dangerous.  Do you agree?

Michèle Montas, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General: To whom was the question addressed?

Question: To the Secretary-General, as I said at the beginning.

The Secretary-General: I’m sorry, I couldn’t exactly understand.

Question:  Let me say it one more time.  The U.S. media says that (unintelligible) providing weapons to Sunni tribes will jeopardize peace and stability in future Iraq.

The Secretary-General:  I am not aware of that fact which you asked your question.

Question:  Media in the United States are saying that by arming the Sunnis, the situation in Iraq is going to be more dangerous.  [Do] you agree with this statement that the media is putting [unintelligible]?  Do you agree with it or not?

The Secretary-General:  First of all, the situation in Iraq has been very difficult and there has been always sectarian violence continuing.  It is very worrisome and the multinational forces have been making great efforts to bring peace and security there.  For your specific questions, I am not in a position to mention anything which was reported in the media.

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic): Yes, I understand what this person just said:  that arming the Sunni factions could lead to a problem.  We are trying to put an end to Sunni militias, but the Government authority is the only one permitted to carry weapons and responsible for providing security.  It is not the responsibility of any small group or faction or others to carry weapons to ensure security.

We know that some factions have suffered from terrorism.  However, we shouldn’t offer asylum to terrorists.  We have a central terrorism monitoring committee and we welcome the members of those factions or tribes so that they can work with the army or the security forces and no longer threaten our security, because they will themselves be security officers.

Question:  Mr. Secretary-General, Prime Minister Maliki just said that he understands –- he says that the security situation in Iraq has improved.  Do you agree in this analysis that the security situation has improved so as that you can commit more of your staff to the ground there?  And Mr. Maliki, how much frustrated are you for your country’s security that your biggest partners, the U.S. and Iran, have yet to speak at a ministerial level about your country’s future?

The Secretary-General: Security is still unstable and I would really hope that the security will be ensured as soon as possible.  It is true that, with the contributions and sacrifice of many multinational forces and the Iraqi Government, security has been improving, but I think much more has to be done.  This has direct implications how the United Nations presence or activities will increase there.  While the United Nations has been playing a very important role there, it is also true that our activities have been largely constrained or dictated by the situation on the ground.  The United Nations has been consistently improving the protective facilities, including integrated facilities so that staff can live and work under one roof.  Now we have requested the necessary budget to the General Assembly and some facilities have been constructed.  It is still going on.  The safety and security of our staff is of very paramount interest and concern to us.  When we see the security improve on the ground, we will continue to increase our presence in terms of physical presence as well as in terms of our diplomatic and political facilitation there.

Question: To the Prime Minister:  several Sunni political parties -– one Sunni political party at least –- have pulled out of your Government, now a moderate Sunni, Vice-President Hashimi, says he’s going to have to reconsider his position because of slow movement on a reconciliation agenda.  Similar criticism has come from the United States Government, as well as politicians.  How long do you think your Government can still survive?

And to the Secretary-General:  I thought you had pulled out of Basra because of the British scale-down.  How do you hope to go back in?

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic):  When we talk of improvement, that does not mean that we do not have some problems.  But those problems are very small because there had previously been a stalemate at the political level.  Thus, a number of parties have started the political process.  Let me speak of some withdrawals by some parties.  This has not at all affected the Iraqi Government.  The Government continues to work under the Constitution.  A number of political and social elements may participate in the activities of the Government.  We have the infrastructure to protect the work of the Government in Iraq.

The Secretary-General: For your second question, this is the plan:  we will have to closely monitor the security situations there, including in Basra.  We will closely monitor and coordinate with Iraqi and other MNF forces before we take a necessary decision.  But what I stated earlier is a plan which we are very seriously considering.

Question:  Mr. Secretary-General, we understand you’re determined to increase the role of the United Nations in Iraq and help the Iraqi people.  But realistically speaking, your presence in Baghdad is within the Green Zone.  There is not much interaction with the Iraqi people.  Your UN vehicles even leave that Green Zone in unmarked vehicles and the modest increase in the number of people -- for Iraqis, I don’t think it augurs well that this increase will bring change to their lives.

Question:  How realistic, really, [is it] for us to believe that?  I understand your determination and your goodwill.  But, as you mentioned, the security situation is still unstable, and I’m quoting you.  This, of course, will curtail your efforts.  But how realistic do you want us to believe it is that your determination will make a difference in Iraq?

And my question, Sir, to you (interpretation from Arabic), Mr. Prime Minister:  the Secretary-General has described the security situation in Iraq as unstable, despite the fact that you have said on many occasions that the situation has improved.  What do you think about that?

The Secretary-General:  It is true, again, that the security situation is politically and socially unstable at this time, as everybody will understand and know.  That is exactly why I have been repeatedly saying that we will closely study and review the security situation on the ground.  But, as a matter of principle, it is one of the important duties and responsibilities of the United Nations to help, wherever, those people and Governments who are suffering from all these humanitarian and security difficulties.  That is why the United Nations has been very closely and carefully considering how much and how differently we can contribute to help the Iraqi people and Government so that they will be able to overcome these difficulties and so that they can enjoy genuine freedom, security, democracy and prosperity.

We have been doing, under such extremely difficult circumstances, our political facilitation or humanitarian assistance, economic and social reconstructions.  There may be a role which we can play inside Iraq, but outside Iraq we have also been trying our best to help such efforts.  As you may recall, I and Prime Minister Maliki co-chaired the International Compact meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh in early May, and we have been trying to coordinate with the players in the region so that their cooperation and assistance can be conducive in creating a favourable atmosphere for their society and country.

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic):  Perhaps the Secretary-General and I have not spoken of complete and full stability in describing the situation in Iraq, but we have spoken of a substantial improvement.  And if some of you who are aware of the situation in Iraq know how it used to be, you must admit that there has been an improvement.  Of course, challenges remain.  But, if there is to be stability, there must be security, and, if there were truly full and complete stability, we would not need to have all of these international meetings.

However, I would like to make clear that there are new elements that must be taken into consideration in this equation of fighting terrorism in Iraq.  I believe that among the decisive factors in favour of stability in Iraq, for the benefit of Iraqi citizens, are Iraqi citizens who can finally defeat terrorism, Iraqi citizens who have been harmed by that threat, Iraqi citizens who should be able to muster all the forces they need, and Iraqi citizens who have managed to acquire a great deal of experience.  Those who have tried to defeat democracy have been defeated, the economic situation has improved, and we hope to declare 2008 the economic year, whereas 2007 was the security year.  All of these are elements that will enable us to become confident once again.

Question (interpretation from Arabic):  Mr. Prime Minister, you referred to a Government of technocrats in Iraq.  What about your efforts to form such a Government?  You were discussing candidates belonging to certain coalitions or the Council of Ministers.  How are you training people for the Government?

Secondly, we have heard criticism from the White House.  What do you think about that criticism, and to whom is it addressed?

Prime Minister al-Maliki (interpretation from Arabic):  Our desire to form a Government of technocrats goes back some time.  The transitional phase meant that we had to adopt models in order to establish the Government.  That involved a huge transformation because candidates had been put forward by the major political parties.  Now that the atmosphere has improved, I can submit this plan for a Government of technocrats to the Council of Ministers, which is no longer controlled by political alliances or allegiances.  The Prime Minister should have full authority over his ministers on the basis of their expertise and technical competence.  The number of ministerial portfolios will be drastically reduced to match actual needs and appointments will be made on the basis of rigorous factual criteria, without any kind of speculation or partisan manipulation.

I believe that the atmosphere has become more positive.  Most of our partners have realized that our Government can survive only if it is an independent, autonomous and truly professional Government.  We must do away with political speculation and stick to principle.  However, the framework within which we are working means that we are facing problems:  some portfolios are not filled.  We shall continue to appoint ministers without losing sight of our ultimate goal of a technocrat Government.

With regard to criticism from the White House, I think that that is quite normal; one hears it in the United States Congress, but also in Iraq.  In the Council of Ministers, one hears a great deal of criticism.  But what really matters is what is happening in concrete terms, rather than these kinds of superficial phenomena.  We must rise above these types of reactions.

Basically, I believe that there is much understanding between us and the United States administration.  This agreement has been the driving force behind our economic growth.  We have relaunched the economic sector in the service of development, and I hope that that will continue in the future.

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