Reform Party of Syria (RPS)

MEMRI Blog

In a special interview with the London daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, Iraq's foreign minister Hoshyar Zibari made a number of key points:

• Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's official visit to Paris this week sent a message to the Arab and regional countries that France is returning to Iraq and that it desires full and real partnership with it.
• Relations with Syria are in crisis mode because of the terrible bombings in Baghdad. While Syria itself was not directly responsible for the terrorist activities, there are Ba'thists on Syrian soil who plan and carry out violence in Iraq while receiving Syrian protection. These activities are not marginal and require a strategic brain, and the indications point to the Ba'th elements in Syria.
• The Syrians contacted Iraq through intermediaries indicating willingness to look into Iraq's complaints, but nothing came of it.
• The conflict with Kuwait is primarily over sea channels, many of them blocked by ships sunk during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. The channels need to be cleared so that Iraq can have clear access to the sea. Currently, ships sailing to Iraq go through Kuwaiti territorial water and must raise the Kuwait flag.
• The relationship between Iran and the Western powers is heading toward a crisis. The U.S.'s options in Iran are limited, and there is no military or fundamental solution. The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama is inclined to seek dialogue and reconciliation and to avoid escalation.