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Jack
Straw today called on Europe to put aside its
differences over Iraq as EU leaders made their first
high-level visit since the US invasion in 2003.
Speaking in Baghdad, the Foreign Secretary said it
was time for Europe to help Iraq to create a stable
and democratic future.
"Yes, the Iraq war did divide Europe," Straw said
after meeting Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. "Now
there is a new spirit around to put the past behind
us, to work for this new future for Iraq."
The EU delegation included its foreign policy chief,
Javier Solana, Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the External
Relations Commissioner, and Jean Asselborn,
Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister. Luxembourg currently
holds the EU’s rotating six-month presidency, a post
that will taken over by Britain in three weeks'
time.
They met President Jalal Talabani and were to hold
meetings with Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari and
other members of his Shia-led government.
The trip was not announced in advance for security
reasons, as suicide car bombings, mortar attacks and
drive-by shootings are daily occurrences in Baghdad.
President Talabani, a Kurd, welcomed Europe's change
of heart. "We see a night and day difference in the
attitude of the EU toward Iraq," he said. "I think
there are tremendous opportunities for cooperation
between Iraq and the European Union."
Frau Ferrero-Waldner, an Austrian, said that the EU
visit to Iraq - the first since the war split the EU
and the NATO alliance - was a chance for Europe to
take a new road.
"I think it is a very deeply significant event
because this is the beginning of a new political
relationship that would grow into a real
partnership," she said.
The EU commission took a rigorously neutral stance
in the dispute among EU members on the war. The
trip, which has long been in the cards, was a sign
of the trade bloc’s desire to resume normal
relations with Iraq.
Talks were being held in preparation for a one-day
international summit on Iraq on June 22, hosted by
the EU Commission in Brussels, to which more than 80
countries and international organizations have been
invited. Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of
State, is also expected to attend.
"It will be a very, very important moment not only
for Europe but also for Iraq. We will do our best to
help you to establish and restore the rule of law in
Iraq," M Asselborn said.
Top representatives from the United Nations, the
Arab League and Iraq’s neighbors, including Iran and
Syria, would attend the conference, which will aim
to bolster international support for political and
economic reforms and back efforts to draft a
constitution. Iraq is expected to send a large
delegation.
In Brussels, EU spokeswoman Emma Udwin said the
talks in Baghdad would allow for an exchange of
views on the conference where the EU is hoping the
Iraqi authorities will set out priorities for
international aid.
She said that would help guide the EU’s grant of 200
million euros in aid this year.
"There are wide possibilities for cooperation in the
political front, on the security front, on the
economic front, on the trade front, and on the
cultural front," President Talabani said. "We need
this support."
Mr Straw said that the international community was
aware of the difficulties Iraq faced in building its
democracy and drafting a new constitution. The
charter must be ready by mid-August and approved in
a referendum two months later. It needs approval
from Iraq’s minority Sunni Arabs if it is to be
adopted.
There have been calls for more participation in the
process by Sunni Arabs, who stayed away from the
national elections in January either through fear or
because of a boycott. Sunni Arabs are thought to
make up the core of the insurgency that has killed
about 900 people since the Iraqi government was
announced on April 28.
Mr Straw said that Europe would not interfere in
Iraq's political process, adding that it was not up
to the international community to tell its leaders
"how to run Iraq."
He praised the January elections as a success, and
said that Mr al-Jaafari’s administration and the
newly elected 275-member parliament "made a lot of
efforts to pull Sunni representative into
government."
In a personal note, Mr Straw turned to President
Talabani at the end of the meeting to offer him
congratulations on becoming Iraq’s first Kurdish
president.
"Your appointment symbolizes the new future for
Iraq. Who would have thought under the fear of
Saddam, that somebody who has to fight for his
freedom, and the freedom of his people would end up
as the democratically appointed president of Iraq,"
Straw said.
www.timesonline.co.uk
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