In three exclusive interviews with Solana, Zibari and Asefi, Dina Ezzat finds out that there is much work to be done to achieve a semblance of regional stability Iraqi Foreign Minister knows how to keep his cool. He never loses his poise, even when his adversaries, who see him as a "mere Kurdish politician who is seeking to get the Kurds the maximum they want out of the current government", launch harsh criticism against him. Zebari still smiles when asked about his alleged debates with Shia and Sunni aides concerning his assignment of "too many Kurds" to the recently approved list of 41 Iraqi diplomats set to represent Iraq. Zebari still lights a French-brand cigarette when confronted with accusations that he is the new United States' man in the region. Zebari provides a simple response to many, if not all of these accusations. "I believe that people in the region still need to get to know us. I am not the only one people are concerned about -- it's the entire government they are worried about, mainly because they do not know us," he said. He added that the ousting of Saddam Hussein from power would not be a unique event, and that there would be more in the way of "regime change" in the region. According to the Iraqi foreign minister, "change is very hard to accept in this part of the world." Change, he believes, is generally hard to accept, especially if it is introduced at a time when there is intense discussion over the need for reform. Zebari is convinced that much of the criticism directed against him and the Iraqi caretaker government stems from the fact that "countries of the region still need to digest the 'new Iraq', and the new faces that it has brought to the scene... They need to realise that even after fair, free and democratic elections are conducted, many of the faces of this temporary government will still be around," he said. "Many of us will be elected to office simply because we have developed constituencies and worked hard to maintain them," he added. In the "new Iraq", Zebari hopes democracy will prevail. And in sharp contrast to the days under Saddam Hussein's rule, the people will decide who serves in the government. Zebari, however, stressed that he will not be discouraged by the cold reception he and his colleagues have at times received in many Arab capitals. Regional leaders must realise that the new Iraqi government will not be intervening in the internal affairs of any of its neighbours, or threaten its neighbours in any way whatsoever, Zebari said. "We are here to stay so we might as well start building good relations," he said. The Iraqi foreign minister says that maintaining good ties with the Arab world and the Arab League is a priority. Since March 2003, when Zebari and other members of the Iraqi government attended the Arab League meetings, they have been extending a friendly hand to every Arab official they meet. "We have invited Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa to Baghdad, and hope his visit could signal to the Arab world our good will." He has promised to come, Zebari said. "The Iraqi government will not allow Iraqi territories to be a launching pad for any hostile operations against any neighbouring countries," he said, adding that the new government expects the same in return. Some of Iraq's neighbours have problems with the United States and think they can settle scores with the Americans on Iraqi territory, he said. This is unacceptable. "We do not want to get in the middle between the United States and any of our neighbours," he stressed. "We want to help improve relations between Washington and our neighbours, but they do not believe we have an influence over US foreign policy and can make a positive difference," he said. The Iraqi foreign minister says that his country wants to establish strong political, economic and other forms of cooperation with its neighbours. He argued that the concern Iraq has about its neighbouring states is security related, and said that due to concerns over security, neighbouring states should not send troops to help stabilise Iraq. Meanwhile, Iraqi officials, including Zebari himself, have been complaining about the alleged involvement of some neighbouring states in facilitating and even commanding "the terrorist attacks that harm the interests of our people". Iraqi officials have cited Turkey, Iran and Syria as prime suspects. Last week, hours before Al-Ahram Weekly met with Zebari, the Iraqi foreign minister had voiced threats against Iraq's neighbours, suggesting that Iraq might decide to retaliate militarily against these states for their alleged meddling within Iraq's internal affairs. He pinpointed Iran whose influence over the Shia population in Iraq cannot be underestimated. But Zebari said: "Such statements do not represent the position of the Iraqi government. They were not issued by the Foreign Ministry, which represents the country on foreign policy issues." Zebari promised that no more such statements would be coming out of Baghdad, explaining that Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi said as much during his recent Arab tour. He offered a similar commitment to both the Turkish and Iranian foreign ministers during a meeting attended by states neighbouring Iraq, held in Cairo last Wednesday. But on Monday, the Iraqi defence minister was making threats against Iran for alleged meddling. This time, Iran was accused of orchestrating and encouraging security problems for the new Iraqi government. Iraq's security will be discussed in Tehran soon in a meeting that will bring together the interior ministers of Iraq, Iran, Turkey, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan and Egypt. Zebari proposed coordinating security efforts during the Cairo meeting late last week. "We hope we will bring an end to any problems we have with infiltrators, especially those crossing borders covertly," Zebari said. In Tehran, Zebari knows that the Iraqi delegation will not be doing all the talking -- it will have to answer to allegations of a high level military and security Israeli presence in the Kurdish zone north of Iraq. Zebari added that Israel has no formal presence in Iraq. During the Cairo meeting, Zebari declined to accept a Syrian proposal, supported by several other delegations, to address this issue in a final communiqué. "This was simply out of the question," he said. "Why should I say in a communiqué that I do not have any Israeli presence in Iraq?" he said, explaining that he, like officials from all other Arab countries, cannot know whether his country hosts Mossad agents or not. In Tehran, the Iraqi delegation should also expect questions concerning the presence of some 150,000 American troops based on Iraqi soil for an unidentified period of time. "I believe that one thing our new government is determined to do is be honest," Zebari said, adding that the country needs more time to maintain its security. "If the coalition troops were to pull out now, then we could have some very serious signs of chaos. We could actually have acts of civil strife," he said. "The presence of the coalition troops is very important for us now," he said, adding that those countries critical of the coalition troops have to tell the Iraqi government if they are willing to commit security assistance to Iraq." But what security are the coalition forces keeping in Iraq? There is hardly an hour that passes in Iraq without some serious acts of violence: assassinations, explosions and kidnappings. Zebari says that these are the works of "terrorists and insurgents and of die-hard Baathists who cannot come to terms with the fact that their times are gone and that today is the day of 'new Iraq'". The Iraqi government, Zebari says, is determined to go after such "elements" and to impose maximum-security measures to spare the Iraqi people from their "evil actions". Zebari said that "it is those terrorists who are responsible for the assassination" of some of Iraq's best scientific minds during the past few months. "They kill people who can help Iraq make progress," he said. He added that it was due to this state of violence that the Iraqi government had asked the US administration to transport uranium from Iraq to the US, to keep terrorists from accessing it. Meanwhile, Zebari brushes aside all suggestions that the success of the political process in Iraq is slim due to the failure of the different ethnic and tribal groups in Iraq to agree on a clear plan of action. The fact that the preparations for the convocation of the National Conference, which should pave the way towards the Iraqi national elections, have proven to be problematic is not a reason for great concern on Zebari's side. Zebari is also unnerved by claims that the political greed of Kurds, a group to which he belongs, could undermine the chances of stability in Iraq. He was unequivocal in denying all reports suggesting that he got into trouble with Shia and Sunni members of the Iraqi Foreign Ministry and the Iraqi government, including Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, over his nomination of too many Kurds in a list of 41 diplomats, to be sent overseas to represent Iraq. "This is absolutely rubbish. It is untrue. There were no such arguments," he said. According to Iraq's foreign minister, the nominations were made on "strict professional merit". "I could not have excluded someone who will make an excellent ambassador simply because of the Kurdish affiliation," he said. But Zebari would not reveal how many of the 41 names on the list are Kurds. Asked whether Iraq would contemplate sending a Kurdish ambassador to Turkey, he said: "If you ask me this question then I could tell you that I am not going to send a Kurdish ambassador to Turkey just as much as I won't send a Baathist to Kuwait or Iran, a woman to the Arab League," he said.
