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Further information on Iraq |
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German aid for the reconstruction of Iraq |
Last updated in January 2005
Situation in Iraq
Role of the
multinational force
NATO training
assistance
Role of the United
Nations
Iraq and the European
Union
The accreditation of ambassadors in Baghdad and Berlin on 24 and 28 August 2004 marked the restoration of full diplomatic relations between Germany and Iraq. Since the Gulf War in 1990/91 and during the period of occupation after the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime, they had been continued to a limited degree, but the visits by the Iraqi President Al-Yawar on 9 September 2004 and by Prime Minister Allawi on 3 December 2004 to Berlin attest to the resumption of full-scale political relations between Germany and Iraq.
Immediately after the war in 2003, Germany provided Iraq with extensive humanitarian aid and has since been assisting the country in reconstruction efforts and in the process of political transition. Through training projects and specific equipment assistance, for example, Germany is contributing to rebuilding the Iraqi police force, the administration and the armed forces. As part of planned and ongoing programmes, it is training over 1,500 Iraqis in different areas, including:
Economic and cultural relations between Iraq and Germany have also been renewed since mid-2003, although the dangerous security situation overshadows much of this. German enterprises are engaged in national reconstruction. At their meeting in Berlin in December 2004, Prime Minister Allawi and Federal Chancellor Schroeder agreed on a German-Iraqi economic conference to take place in Munich in April 2005 as well as on founding a German-Iraqi chamber of commerce. Germany is helping to reconstruct Iraqi libraries and museums and grants Iraqi scientists special scholarships for studies and research at German universities. Furthermore, under an agreement of the Club of Paris creditor nations, Germany will release Iraq from 80% of its bilateral debts, which amounts to approx. EUR 4.7 billion.
About 84,000 Iraqis live in Germany at present and many have studied here - including two members of the Iraqi interim government.
In Iraq today, the appalling security situation stands in stark contrast to the efforts at national reconstruction and the political transition to democracy after years of dictatorship.
After the entry of the coalition troops and the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in the spring of 2003, Iraq was initially administered by the occupation powers. The Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) established for this purpose held governmental power, delegating some responsibilities to the Iraqi Governing Council it appointed as of July 2003.
The period of occupation ended officially with the restoration of Iraqi sovereignty on 28 June 2004. On this day, the Iraqi provisional government, whose members were appointed by agreement between the CPA and the Governing Council, commenced its duties, as confirmed by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1546 on 8 June 2004.
The Transitional Administrative Law adopted by the Governing Council on 8 March 2004 regulates political transition and sets out the following schedule:
Other key provisions of the transitional law are:
UN Security Council Resolution No. 1546 does not mention the transitional law, but confirms some of its key provisions, especially the main dates of the transition schedule.
Role of
the multinational force
UN Security Council Resolution No. 1546 and Resolution No. 1511 of 16 October 2003 together form the legal basis for the deployment in Iraq of the multinational force, which currently numbers approx. 180,000 troops. Resolution No. 1546 extends the mandate of the multinational force deployed in Iraq. This mandate ends on 31 December 2005 at the latest, with the end of the political process. Previously, in a letter to the President of the Security Council, the Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi had requested that the multinational force remain in Iraq because Iraqís armed forces were not yet able to guarantee security within the country themselves. Under a provision supported by Germany along with other members of the Security Council, the Resolution lays down that the Security Council must end the mandate of the multinational force at any time if requested to do so by Iraqís interim government.
Another major security provision of the Resolution is the obligation of the UN-mandated multinational force to engage in partnership, cooperation and consultation with Iraqís interim government. This applies in particular to sensitive offensive military operations. Iraqís new security arrangements are outlined in greater detail in letters from US Secretary of State Powell and the new Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi appended to the Resolution. The new Iraqi army is under the command of the multinational force.
The multinational force is still divided into four military sectors: northern and central Iraq is under US command, southern Iraq under British command and the intermediate southern sector under Polish command. All the armed forces deployed in Iraq are under US supreme command.
In a letter of 20 June 2004, Iraqi Prime Minister Allawi requested NATO for support in training Iraqi security forces. At the NATO summit in Istanbul (28/29 June 2004), the German government agreed to a NATO training mission. Federal Chancellor Schroeder stressed that Germany, like many other NATO countries, will not send any troops to Iraq. On account of the Iraqi population's animosity towards foreign troops and the extremely precarious security situation, the German government has been training Iraqi soldiers outside Iraq in the United Arab Emirates since November 2004. The NATO training mission is in the process of being set up. In the first step, 70 instructors will be assigned with support personnel to Baghdad. The plan is to establish an Iraqi training centre for high-ranking personnel of the armed forces.
In early June 2003, the UN took up its work in the country on the basis of Resolution No. 1483. Following a heavy attack on the UN building in Baghdad on 19 August 2003, in which Sergio Vieira de Mello, the UN Special Representative to Iraq, was killed, as well as other targeted attacks on international and foreign establishments, the UN and many NGOs operating in Iraq withdrew their staff from the country for the time being in early November 2003. However, the UN remains constantly engaged in Iraq through the staff of various aid programmes. The UN Special Envoy and former Algerian Foreign Minister Lakhdar Brahimi has been successful as adviser and mediator in appointing the members of the current interim government. On 12 July 2004, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed the former Pakistani ambassador in Washington, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, as the new Special Envoy to Iraq.
The UN still plays an indispensable role in Iraq as a neutral mediator and guarantor of international legitimacy. The UN Special Adviser Lakhdar Brahimi, for example, was successful in advising and liaising in the nomination of members of the present interim government. The UN has also played a key role in preparations for the elections on 30 January 2005. The members of the independent Iraqi Electoral Commission in charge of organizing and conducting the elections were selected and trained by the UN. UN experts continue to advise the Commission and support it in the performance of its tasks.
Even after its membership in the Security Council from 2002 to 2004, Germany still advocates strengthening the role of the UN in Iraq. Among other things, the Federal Foreign Office has provided financial support amounting to EUR 4 million for the protection of UN facilities in Baghdad.
The European Union is an important political and economic partner of Iraq's. In 2001, the EU accounted for 55% of Iraqi imports. In 2003 and 2004, it provided EUR 300 million for humanitarian aid and reconstruction in Iraq in addition to assistance earmarked by the member states in the EU budget. EU experts also supported preparations for the elections in January 2005 by training electoral observers and providing advice to the Iraqi Electoral Commission.
The visit by Prime Minister Allawi to the European Council in Brussels on 5 November
2004 also underscored the role of relations between Iraq and the EU. During this visit,
the European Council issued a statement voicing EU support for political transition,
offering Iraq an additional substantive aid package and providing for negotiations on a
partnership agreement in the medium term. The medium-term EU strategy for cooperation with
Iraq is outlined in a document entitled, The European Union and Iraq ñ A Framework
for Engagement, which was approved by the European Council on 17 and 18 June 2004.
The
European Union and Iraq ñ A Framework for Engagement (pdf)