Despite other disagreements, all Iraqi forces want the next Arab summit to take place in Baghdad, reports Dina Ezzat Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa received a single answer from all Iraqi leaders, whether Sunni, Shia or Kurd, following talks in Baghdad, Najaf and Erbil: the next Arab summit, scheduled for March 2011 under the Iraqi presidency, should take place in Iraq. Moussa was in Iraq for talks over the weekend with top Iraqi officials and leading religious leaders on political developments in Iraq and the holding of the next annual Arab summit meeting. While he received various accounts from different political forces on the pace and details of political developments in the country, Moussa found a shared determination among all parties that the next summit should be held either in Baghdad, the capital, or in the northern city of Erbil, should security concerns prohibit Arab leaders from going to Baghdad. "The Erbil scenario is offered as a remote alternative. The next summit has to be in Iraq, anywhere in Iraq, but the intention is to have it in the capital," said one Iraqi diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity. According to statements made by Moussa and Iraqi officials during the secretary-general's visit, the summit should be inaugurated by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani in Baghdad. "We are not going to compromise on our right to host and chair the next Arab summit, and it would be unacceptable to hold the summit in any other country," said Hoshyar Zebari, the Iraqi foreign minister, following talks with Moussa in Baghdad. Zebari was referring to proposals made in some Arab quarters over the past few months to hold the summit in Egypt, the headquarters of the Arab League, under the Iraqi presidency, which would still be in line with the charter of the organisation and various precedents. "The convocation of the Arab summit in Iraq has a clear significance, especially since Iraq needs the Arab presence and the Arabs need Iraq," Zebari said. Osama Al-Nedjefi, speaker of the Iraqi parliament, also said it was crucial for the summit to be held in Baghdad. Like other Iraqi political leaders who commented following talks with Moussa, Al-Nedjefi said the holding of the Arab summit in Iraq was part and parcel of the comprehensive re- integration of Iraq into the Arab world. Al-Nedjefi called for wide and high-level participation by Arab leaders at the next Arab summit. "I imagine many in Iraq today are seeking the Arab presence to balance the other foreign political influences in the country, and it would be wise of the Arabs to reciprocate this Iraqi keenness, notwithstanding concerns in some capitals over security," said one Arab diplomat. According to a resolution adopted by the last Arab summit, held in the Libyan city of Sirte last March, the next Arab summit will be held under the presidency of Iraq and in the Iraqi capital. Iraq was also supposed to chair the 2010 summit. However, due to the fragile political and security situation in the country, it agreed to a formula proposed by the Arab summit in Qatar to delay this role to 2011, pending positive developments in the political and security situation. In carefully worded statements made in Iraq, Moussa indicated a willingness to see the holding of the next Arab summit in Iraq. He refused to be drawn, however, about attendance. Some Arab capitals are apprehensive about the holding of the Arab summit in Baghdad. Egypt's ambassador to Iraq, Cherif Chahine, went on record as saying that Cairo supported the idea, but Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nizar Obeid Madani said that Riyadh was awaiting "the report of the Arab League secretary-general on his talks in Iraq" before deciding its position. Arab League officials said that a detailed report would be forwarded to all Arab capitals on the outcome of the Moussa talks, as would the report presented to the Arab League delegation on logistical and security preparations for the proposed Arab summit. Over the past few weeks, the League has received three Iraqi delegations to review preparations undertaken by the Iraqi authorities to host the Arab summit. It seems that the impression across the Arab world is that Iraq is slowly returning to normal, and that this process could be supported by holding the summit in Baghdad, even with a limited presence from Arab leaders. In his speech before the Iraqi parliament, Moussa said that Iraq was turning over a new political leaf that would take the country towards greater stability and cohesion. In his talks with Iraqi officials and religious and political leaders, Moussa was told that the holding of the Arab summit in Baghdad next March would give a firm boost to Iraq's march towards normality.
