Deputy Prime Minister H.E. Mr. Saleh al-Mutlaq Speaks at United States Institute of Peace
His Excellency delivered remarks on the governance and stability in Iraq; USIP also welcomed Members of the Council of Representatives to participate in a Town Hall Discussion on the transition, services and peace in Iraq.
The United States Institute of Peace (USIP), the National Defense University (NDU), and the Iraqi American Community Center (IAC) hosted on January 14, 2014 in Washington, DC, H.E. Mr. Saleh al-Mutlaq, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq, and members of the Iraqi Council of Representatives for public remarks and a discussion on governance, services, transition, and peace and stability in Iraq.
Opening remarks were delivered by moderator William B. Taylor, Vice President for Middle East and Africa at the U.S. Institute of Peace. Ambassador Taylor spoke about the role of USIP for the last ten years in Iraq and welcomed Dr. al-Mutlaq to Washington.
H.E. Mr. Saleh al-Mutlaq, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Iraq delivered Keynote remarks, speaking about terrorism and the current security and economic situations in the country and the region.
Recognizing that Iraq is not the only country suffering from terrorism, H.E. Saleh al-Mutlaq reiterated that terrorism has no borders and stressed the importance for not only Middle Eastern countries, but other countries, to work together in the fight to stop cross-border terrorism and violence.
H.E. emphasized that all brothers of Iraq are determined to rid the country of violence. Speaking in regards to the Iraqi army, H.E. Saleh al-Mutlaq further stressed that arming the Iraqi army is not enough to fight terrorism by itself; a cohesive society and reconciliation are needed in conjunction with arms.
Speaking to the importance of upcoming national elections, the Deputy Prime Minister reaffirmed that trust, transparency and international monitoring will be necessary in order for free elections to take place in Iraq.
Following H.E. Saleh al-Mutlaq’s remarks, MP Izzat Shahbandar and MP Nada al-Jiboury participated in a Town Hall Discussion with members of the USIP audience. Sarhang Hamasaeed, USIP Senior Program Officer for the Middle East and Africa, delivered opening remarks and welcomed the members of Iraqi parliament.
Ambassador Lukman Faily joined Iraqi delegation at the United States Institute of Peace for the program.
