Statement by First Deputy Permanent Representative Dmitry Polyanskiy at UNSC briefing on the situation in Iraq
Mr.President,
We thank Special Representative Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert for the briefing on the situation in Iraq.
We closely follow the developments in friendly Iraq. Domestic political instability in the country, which unfolds against the backdrop of a complicated socio-economic situation, still causes our concern. Since the end of July, there have been mass rallies in Baghdad and some southern provinces, where protestors seized governmental buildings and attacked offices of political parties. Violent clashes killed several dozens of people and hundreds were wounded, including law enforcement officers.
All this resulted from gross contradiction that occurred among the Iraqi leading political forces. So far, they have been unable to complete the formation of the country's authorities following the early parliamentary elections to the Council of Representatives of Iraq that were held in October 2021. We hope that the parties that made it to the Parliament will soon agree on the candidate for the presidential office and the composition of the new government that should have the support of all major political, ethnic, and confessional groups of the country.
Mr.President,
We have serious concerns regarding the military escalation in the northern regions of the country, including in the autonomous Kurdistan Region, which took a heavy toll on civilians, including children. Our heartfelt condolences go to the families of the deceased. We stress again that civilian immunity must remain a priority.
We share the opinion of Iraq’s President B.Salih that his country must not turn into an arena for “settling scores”. At the same time we take notice of the statement made by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to which the recent attacks that Iran has taken responsibility for were a response to a serious threat to the security of the country posed by terrorist groups based in the Kurdistan Region.
According to the recent Secretary-General’s report, attacks by ISIL militants are still taking place in various provinces of Iraq, i.a. attacks by suicide bombers that destabilize the already turbulent situation with regional security. In this context, we would like to underscore that this challenge can be effectively opposed only through the maximum broad coordination of counter-terrorist efforts.
We proceed from the assumption that all those who are involved in fight against terrorism in Iraq need to respect sovereignty of the Iraqi state and coordinate their actions with the country’s official authorities.
Mr.President,
We must say that attempts of some external stakeholders to derive benefit from internal Iraqi contradictions also prevent lasting normalization. That is why we call on the global community to support Baghdad’s efforts aimed at stabilizing the domestic situation, including maintenance of the legal order and recovery of Iraq’s social, humanitarian, and financial sectors. Iraq must not be a platform for settling personal scores or regional confrontation.
We support the efforts of Iraqi leadership aimed at improving the situation. We hope that all interested Iraqi stakeholders will stick to a responsible approach, abstain from violence and seek to resolve the existing disputes in legal terms while accounting for the interests of all groups in the country.
We welcome the resumption of dialogue of the official Baghdad and the autonomous Kurdistan Region that should address their current contradictions, mainly in the oil and gas area. We are convinced that further settlement will help respond to challenges of ethnic and confessional nature and engage the economic potential effectively in the interests of the entire Iraqi nation.
In conclusion, let me take this opportunity to reiterate once again our commitment to sovereignty, territorial integrity, and stability of Iraq.
Thank you.
