David Miliband

Iraq election law

It is very good news that the Iraqi Council of Representatives has agreed the basis for next January's national election.  

The fact that Iraq's political leaders overcame a number of hurdles in reaching an agreement is a real sign of Iraq's democratic progress.   

Iraq  held peaceful provincial and regional elections  this year  and  January's national election  will be further evidence that the Iraqi people have chosen dialogue and democracy over those who offered nothing but violence.

Posted at 18:31 09 November 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[2]

War Child

On 19 October War Child, the international children’s charity, release a single, “I Got Soul”. The idea is to raise the issue of child soldiers, the effects of war, and the work War Child does with children in Iraq, Afghanistan, DRC and Uganda. The song is based on the memorable Killers line “I got soul, but I’m not a soldier” and all the artists recording it are big names in the UK’s urban scene. I must confess Grime doesn’t get a lot of play in the Miliband household, but I'm sure this will be a big hit and will raise awareness about these conflicts.

Posted at 10:21 14 October 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[4]

Opportunities in Iraq

As security improves across Iraq, the business opportunities are growing. Iraq has the potential to become a major force in the regional economy in the way that it once was before Saddam drove the country into the ground.
 
Iraq's opportunity is clear: to use its energy wealth to bring about real improvements to the lives of orginary people, to build better public services rather than create a destructive war machine.
 
I was delighted to see a great British company like BP taking such a determined and active role in the recent oil bidding round. In awarding the vast Rumeilah field to BP and its Chinese partner, the Iraqis are recognising BP's cutting edge expertise and technical know-how and it is great to see BP joining Shell in playing a major role in working with Iraq and contributing to increased diversity of energy supplies.
 
The conspiracy theorists will no doubt rattle on that this is why we went to war. But the bidding round was designed and run by and for Iraqis and transparently so. The way it should be. BP won - good for them, good for Iraq and good for the UK.

Posted at 14:10 14 July 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[1]

Iraq Defence Agreement

Iraq will always be divisive in British politics but I hope the announcement today of a new defence agreement will be widely welcomed. UK troops are leaving but we will maintain support for the Iraqi military .  Today our Baghdad embassy representative signed an agreement with the Iraqi Defence Minister on future defence cooperation with Iraq. Once the agreement is ratified by both countries - hopefully later this month - the UK will provide training for the Iraqi navy around the port of Umm Qasr, as well as helping the Iraqis to protect the nearby oil platforms. We will also increase our defence section at the embassy in Baghdad, and provide training in the UK for Iraqi officers.

Engagement at economic level is growing. So is cultural and educational engagement. Now the military relationship can be put on a stable basis.

Posted at 20:57 06 June 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[4]

Out of Iraq, Back Into Iraq

30 April marked the formal handover of responsibilities by British troops in Southern Iraq. There was rightly media focus on the 179 British soldiers who lost their lives, and the Iraqi civilians who were killed in fighting in Basra and surrounding areas. For them and their families, Thursday will have been especially hard. Nothing can temper the reality of their loss and we mourn with them.

I have always said the historians will have to come to judgements about the last six years in Iraq. We know some things that clearly went wrong. But the longer term picture is not yet clear. The fact that Iraq stands on the cusp of vital decisions was brought out in Prime Minister Maliki's visit to the UK. His address to a 600 strong "Invest Iraq" conference alongside Douglas Alexander and Peter Mandelson showed the depth of commercial interest and potential. It also demonstrated that Britain will be true to its word of ramping up civilian engagement as we draw down militarily.

Iraq is currently a word associated in the UK with war - and the political divisions at home. When I met the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister they talked about what was at stake: a pluralist and free society in the Middle East. We need to be there with them

Posted at 14:11 05 May 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[2]

Glasgow Makes Iraqis Proud

I have just come from meeting six families of formerly locally engaged FCO staff in Iraq, who have taken up the resettlement scheme and come to live in the UK. Over 200 have done so in total. Over 540  have chosen the financial package and stayed in Iraq.

The testimonies of these people were moving. I told them about Britain's debt to them; about the situation in Iraq as I saw it; about the help we are trying to give. They talked about gratitude, about being safe, about aspirations for their children and their commitment to build a better life and to contribute to British society.

They talked too about the welcome from the people of Glasgow. They made community spirit come alive.

Posted at 13:33 16 April 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[1]

Six years in Iraq: fragile, reversible but moving in right direction

9 April marked the sixth anniversary of the fall of Saddam Hussein. The attached article in the New Statesman sets out my reflections. Iraq's development matters to the whole of the Middle East.  Divisions about the wisdom of the war cannot be overcome. But there is far more shared analysis about the peace making - its contours and missteps and then its improvement. There is a chance of unity about the way forward.

Posted at 17:09 10 April 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[5]

Military withdrawal not British withdrawal

Over the next few months British forces will complete their mission in Basra. But British engagement should go up: in business, education and culture this city wants British partnership. We will keep our Consulate here. The Invest Iraq conference will promote business here. Basra has the chance of a better future.

Posted at 22:10 27 February 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[0]

Basra Corniche on a Friday afternoon

If you had told me in December 07 when I spent a morning at Basra air base, and couldn't go off base, that 14 months later I would be chatting with Basrawis out with friends and family on the Corniche by the Shatt Al Arab waterway I would not have believed you. Not everyone goes for a walk with an armed escort but the Basrawis told me the same thing one after another: Basra security has been changed fundamentally, the big issue now is unemployment, the future is about Basra being a great city again. Iraqi leadership has been key but so has British military and civilian support. Police chief Adel has been given huge support from a UK police team. He spoke with pride about his force. Clean and efficient police are the difference between a city which functions and one which doesn't.

Posted at 22:09 27 February 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[1]

Fundamental change of mission

Baghdad was a good place to mark President Obama's announcements on Iraq troop withdrawal.  His announcement follows the same agreed pattern as that adopted by the UK: withdrawal of combat troops to fundamentally change the mission to one of training and mentoring. His announcement combines troop withdrawal with political commitment.  I said yesterday in Baghdad that President Obama was proceeding with care and common sense.  The commitment until August 2010 allows for critical US support through the National elections early next year. Then Iraqis will have their own future in their own hands.

Posted at 22:06 27 February 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[1]

Elections in Iraq

The report in the Sunday Telegraph  of a vital and vibrant downtown Basra is a good reminder that Iraq remains an important part of Middle East developments. The prospect of electoral power is concentrating the minds of Shia and Sunni parties. As we move to complete our military training operations in the south, the importance of political and economic engagement rises.

Posted at 17:35 27 January 2009 by David Miliband  |  Comments[0]

Hand in hand

On Friday in Bradford a student at Tong High School told me that the best thing about her school was the way it brought a diverse group of people together - "all races and religions".  I got the same message in a very different place earlier in the week - in Jerusalem where Hand in Hand  operate one of their four schools that bring Israeli Arabs and Jews together in equal numbers.  There is not much that brings together Muslims and Jews in the Middle East, so Hand in Hand deserves support (and the UK embassy offers some financial support to the project).

These are the bottom up examples of human cooperation and respect that go against the loud tide of rhetoric that calls people to religious (or nationalist) allegiance.  I tried to give voice to some of this thinking in speaking after Friday prayers at Madni Jamia mosque on Friday .  I was genuinely touched to be invited. The mosque is a recent winner (in 2007) of the UK "model mosque" competition. The questions afterwards were tough - about Iraq, about Gaza - but they came from an abiding sense among the people there that I was their Foreign Secretary as much as any other British citizens'.   That is good and heartening.

Posted at 13:18 26 November 2008 by David Miliband  |  Comments[2]

Iraq: it's now the politics, stupid

The attached article from the New York times paints a clear and compelling picture of the security situation in Iraq.  Things are much better. But they are not normal. Security can bring further change. But politics is key - to pass new laws that can help make possible resolution of some of the most difficult problems (eg the status of Kirkuk), that can allow for provincial elections that bring all groups into government at local level. Iraq is not on most British front pages but it remains a big commitment. Politics is key to progress.

Posted at 15:07 23 June 2008 by David Miliband  |  Comments[0]

May in Iraq

This month saw the lowest number of security incidents in Iraq in four years and the lowest level of sectarian violence since 2003.  There is something changing in a serious way

Posted at 21:46 07 June 2008 by David Miliband  |  Comments[4]

Hope in Iraq

This is the theme of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's speech to the first international compact review conference on Iraq. All Iraq's economic and political partners are here. The progress on security - from 1500 attacks a week to less than 300 - is striking, as is economic growth (including oil production). But the problems are still immense and that makes the next year of the compact key.

I used my meeting with Foreign Minister Zebari to reflect on the need for continued cooperation on the issue of the five British hostages taken in Baghdad. Today marks the first anniversary of their seizure. They and their families have suffered terribly as their testimony today shows. We have not forgotten them.

Posted at 17:44 29 May 2008 by David Miliband  |  Comments[3]