Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner: Says France is the

right country to initiate a global effort to rebuild Iraq.

Liberation, France

Bernard Kouchner: Why I Went to Iraq

"One cannot walk away from the Iraqis because against our liking, they were liberated by and then forced under American and British allied forces."

-- Bernard Kouchner, French Minister of Foreign Affairs

By Bernard Kouchner*

Translated By Sandrine Ageorges

August 27, 2007

France - Liberation - Original Article (French)

What is there to say of the Iraq from which I have just returned? It is a “democratic” Iraq - equipped with a constitution adopted after a free and direct vote by all - but at war against itself. It is an Iraq free of a bloody dictatorship - which killed between two and four million people - where nevertheless the blood hasn’t finished running. It is a paradoxical Iraq, partitioned, as are Iraq's spirit and its heart: an ultra-protected green zone in Baghdad, a more stable Kurdish region, and the rest preyed upon by waves of violence and hatred which has forced four million refugees and displaced people on the road to exile and continues to kill about two thousand people every month.

Why did I go there? To listen to all the Iraqis - Shiite, Kurd, Sunni, Christian - without exclusiveness. To listen, to feel, to understand, but also to affirm our nation's total support for the objective of national reconciliation and the need for an “inclusive” political dialog. I made a point of meeting all the actors and felt in them a great need to be recognized and to have renewed contact with France and Europe. The Iraqis, who have been isolated for such a long time, have the feeling that the international community has abandoned them. After years of dwelling upon the issue of the American presence, it's time to take care of the Iraqis.

Then, to mark the return of France to a place where part of our future and that of our children will take place. Even if thanks to courageous personnel we have maintained an Embassy in Baghdad, our political attention had been diverted. No [French] Foreign minister had gone there since 1988. But as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, our country has particular responsibilities. It cannot remain ill-informed about such a major crisis that affects not only Iraq, but threatens stability in the region and beyond. Out of all the other crisis in the world, this one is emblematic. One cannot ignore this country on the pretext that it is preyed upon by a culture of violence and that assassination as a tool of policy is a common occurrence. One cannot walk away from the Iraqis because against our liking, they were liberated by and then forced under American and British allied forces. Iraq is at the heart of a number of global issues: confrontation coming into and taking place within communities, intolerance and religious fanaticism, the clash of civilizations and the ambivalent influence of neighboring countries - all within the context of nuclear proliferation and the globalization of  terrorism.

Finally, upon my arrival in Baghdad on August 19th - four years to the day after the attack on U.N. headquarters in Baghdad, I went to honor the memory of my friend Sergio Vieira de Mello and 21 of his colleagues, several of whom had worked with me in Kosovo. Beyond the emotion, this gesture was meant as an invitation to the essential renewal of the U.N.’s role in Iraq. What can France do to help this ravaged country find hope? Initially, we must remain modest. Who would believe that we have a magic formula? As indicated by an Iraqi official, when I asked what role France could play, he said, “it can offer us a fresh look, a new perspective.”

We all know it, France didn't support the 2003 intervention by the coalition. In fact, even if this made it possible to bring down a bloody dictatorship, the method employed to build a safe and democratic Iraq was not a good one, and that's an understatement. The situation is terrible. This page must be turned and things done differently. There is no lasting military solution to this crisis, only a political one. Although the Iraqis themselves, including those hostile to the American presence, don't want an immediate departure of foreign troops, plans for their withdrawal must nonetheless drawn up in agreement with the Iraqi authorities. At the same time, a broad government of national unity must come into being, and France is prepared to act as a mediator in this process. Yes, France can contribute to bringing a new perspective. It can do so especially because it didn't participate in the 2003 intervention, and because it has ever since remained at the side of the Iraqi people - in the red zone. And moreover, it can because it is related to Iraq by old friendships and it enjoys a broad spectrum of contacts with all of Iraq's communities. And finally, because we are the sometimes difficult allies of the Americans - as are any true friends.

France, the first Western non-member of the coalition to send its foreign minister to Iraq since 2003, can contribute to building a new path in the service of a peace that the U.N. and European Union must give form to. France supports international initiatives that will begin a political and international phase of the crisis. The expansion of the role of the United Nations, decided by Resolution 1770 on August 10th, goes in the right direction. It should be made effective. It is also necessary for Iraq's neighboring countries set aside their ambivalence and become credible actors in finding a way out of the crisis. Nothing concrete can be done without them. The process launched in Sharm-el-Sheik, Egypt in May is positive and the agreed-upon provisions must be enacted without delay, in particular the three working groups which touch upon three pivotal issues - energy, refugees, and security. Initiate concrete measures must be taken as quickly as possible. An Iraq at peace with itself is not an unattainable dream. The efforts of many, along with clarity and conviction, can make it a reality. Provided that we all have the courage to make it happen. Let us fear the worst only if we turn away.

*Bernard Kouchner is co-founder of Doctors Without Borders and Doctors of the World. He is currently the French Minister of Foreign and European Affairs

SEE ALSO:

Journal du Dimanche au Quotidien, France

In Baghdad, a 'Historic

Change' in French Policy

http://www.watchingamerica.com/journaldudimancheauquotidien000003.shtml

Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace, France

In Europe and America,

the French Are Back …

http://www.watchingamerica.com/dna000015.shtml

CLICK HERE FOR FRENCH VERSION