UNITED NATIONS, 24 September 2007 — A high-level meeting on Iraq ended here yesterday with support for a bigger UN role in the war-ravaged country but also acknowledgment that this will require a greater security improvement.
UN chief Ban Ki-moon and Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki spoke of broad support for an expanded UN role at the end of a two-hour meeting that brought together representatives of more than 20 countries and multilateral agencies.
“There was an emphasis by many speakers on the key UN role in helping to promote national reconciliation,” Ban said during a joint press conference with Maliki.
“There was clear agreement that the international community cannot turn away from or ignore Iraq,” he added. “Its stability is our common concern.” But the UN chief also cautioned that although security has been improving in Iraq, “much more needs to be done” before the world body can substantially increase its presence.
The United Nations allowed a maximum of 65 staffers to reside in Iraq after its Baghdad office was hit on August 19, 2003 by a truck bomb that killed 22 people, most notably its special envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. Currently there are 95 UN international staffers in the country — 65 in Baghdad and 30 in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Irbil — in addition to several hundred international security personnel. Some 235 UN-affiliated staffers also work out of Jordan and Kuwait.
Iraq and its neighbors met for the UN-sponsored talks with major powers and donors at the United Nations to spur efforts to put the war-scarred country back on its feet despite sectarian violence and rampant corruption.
The closed-door meeting was focused on how to bolster the UN presence and reviewing the International Compact with Iraq (ICI), a five-year plan to stabilize the country on the political, economic and security fronts.
Organizers said the aim was to build on the momentum generated at the international conference on Iraq in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh last May. Maliki and representatives of Iraq’s neighbors were also examining how best to promote regional dialogue and cooperation, UN officials said.
Meanwhile, the four sponsors of the Middle East peace process meet here today to discuss preparations for a US-sponsored Israeli-Palestinian peace conference expected to be held in November.
The UN meeting, being held two days before world leaders kick off summit talks during the General Assembly session, is also an opportunity for the so-called Quartet to hear former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s first report since he was named the grouping’s special envoy in June.
Quartet members are to huddle with representatives of the Arab League at an “Iftar” dinner, the evening meal for breaking the daily fast during the Islamic month of Ramadan. Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store, who is to chair a meeting of donors for the Palestinians today, was to take part in the Iftar dinner.
Eighteen countries are meeting to review six years of efforts to spur reconstruction and good governance in Afghanistan at a time when the restive country is beset by a resurgent Taleban insurgency and soaring opium output.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai and UN chief Ban are co-hosting the high-level meeting. The Afghan leader is due to address the assembly today.
Joining Afghanistan at the talks are Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Iran, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey and the United States.
Also invited are the Asian Development Bank, the European Union, the European Commission, NATO and the World Bank. Organizers say the talks are to focus on ways the international community and the United Nations can help the Kabul government tackle issues of security, good governance, regional cooperation and drug trafficking.
