Iraqi ambassador to U.S.: Global rejection of ISIS crucial
Islamic State terrorists are a global problem whose ideology “should not be allowed to have breathing space,” Ambassador Faily told the Tribune-Review.
WASHINGTON — Islamic State terrorists are a global problem whose ideology “should not be allowed to have breathing space,” Iraq’s ambassador to the United States told the Tribune-Review.
“That means social media, recruiting and financial capabilities. Those things allow ISIS to be legitimized,” Ambassador Lukman Faily said in an interview at his Washington residence. Iraq’s neighbors, he said, “have to stop promoting them and religiously giving them credentials.”
“Think of it like a virus,” Faily said. “If you had a deadly virus among your people, wouldn’t you as a country do everything you could to contain it?”
Faily is a tireless diplomat, associates say. During his time in Washington, al-Abadi’s government replaced that of Nouri al-Maliki, who took office in 2006. Then the Islamic State emerged.
The job requires understanding how people in Iraq and the United States perceive events, Faily said. “You have a lot of dependency on the day-to-day news back home, but you also want to have a long-term view of the relationship between both countries — how is it developing and which areas need work.”
A Kurdish Shiite born in Baghdad, Faily said Iraq’s relationship with Iran emphasizes social, cultural and economic ties. Though he understands that some Americans’ opinion of Iran might be colored by its holding more than 60 Americans captive for 444 days from November 1979 to January 1981, “We do not share your animosity.”
“We have commonalities of tribes, borders, sharing waterways and oil wells,” Faily said. “But we also have commonalities like a mutual hatred for Saddam Hussein, and now ISIS, because we see that as a threat to both countries. … We think that there is a necessity for us to have a stable relationship with our neighbor.”
Faily does not want Americans to think the investment of U.S. troops in his country was a waste.
“I don’t want Iraq and violence to be associated in the American psyche,” Faily said.
Iraq won freedoms — to shape a government and to develop the country — that it did not have before, he said. “This is a new chapter for us, in a tough neighborhood. We need to cherish that, to work harder for that.”
