Kuwaiti Ra'y Newspaper Interviews Sayed Ammar Al-Hakeem

 20-9-2008

Badrtimes - His eminence Sayed Ammar Al-Hakeem described the expected visit of His Highness the Prime Minister of Kuwait to Baghdad as a historic mission, which would contribute in transferring the relations between the two countries to a new horizon.

His eminence, in an interview with the Kuwaiti Ra'y newspaper, confirmed the existence of an Iraqi-Kuwaiti   political will to develop and deepen the relations between the two countries and put an end to the problems, which encountered these relations at days of the previous regime, pointing out that the major Iraqi political forces are «fully committed to the relationship with Kuwait.

 His eminence confirmed Iraq's commitment to the international resolutions expressing the Iraqi wishes in reviewing the subject of the Kuwaiti debts on Iraq and taking appropriate decisions that are in the interests of both sides.

 His eminence, in this connection, mentioned that $ 110 billion of the foreign debts have been dropped while the debts of the Arab countries do not exceed $20 billion.

     Sayed Ammar Al-Hakeem said that "Iraq is a promising land and fertile arena for the exchange of interests, and Kuwait can be of a big role in rebuilding it", stressing the «need to consider all the files between the two countries in terms of the strategic relationship and mutual interests." This came in the interview that the Kuwaiti Al-Ra'y daily newspaper made with his eminence during his recent visit to the brotherly State of Kuwait.

The interview dealt with many issues and topics of interest to the Iraqi arena.

 The following is the text of the meeting:

 

Paper/ Sayed Ammar Al-Hakeem is in Kuwait again.  What is the reason or reasons for this visit and what is the talks' agenda?

 

Al-Hakeem/ we got used to visit Kuwait and communicate with the Kuwaiti leadership and people during the month of Ramadan, a season Kuwait is distinguished from other Arab countries with the existence of Divans and opportunities for communication, building relations and deepening the bonds of relationship between the society and the visitors coming to this generous country.

The other side is related to the consultation with regard to the concerns of the two countries and the region, where we regularly visit the countries of the region, especially Kuwait to communicate, to consult them and brief them on our positions and views in Iraq towards various issues of common concern.

I, therefore, think the nature of the relationship between Iraq and Kuwait and its historic roots, common interests and the horizons of this relationship call for more communication and this is reason of our presence.

 
Paper / What about the agenda of the talks?

 

Al-Hakeem / We will have meetings with the Kuwaiti leadership at the highest levels and the files of the common interest will be discussed.

 Many issues linked to Iraq's conditions might be useful to discuss and study, in addition to reassuring the Kuwaiti brothers on what is happening in Iraq and the details of the political, security and economic events.

The other side is linked to the Iraqi- Kuwaiti relations, where in this stage further consultation and focus are required.

 

Paper / What about the Kuwaiti - Iraqi relations starting from naming ambassadors through the debt issue?  How do you see the course of these relations in the light of current circumstances?

 

Al-Hakeem / What we find is that there is an Iraqi - Kuwaiti political will to develop and deepen relations and put an end to the problems that affected this relationship with the former Iraqi regime, and therefore there is a clear will and sustained steps by the two sides, but we must also know that Iraq today is an open pluralistic country and has free media, and that the political forces and personalities play their roles in announcing and expressing their views in different positions.

It is not accurate to hunt positions and statements issued from here or there.

The attitudes, negative or positive, can not be considered as the Iraqi government or the Iraqi official institutions' stance.

The matter is not like that. Of course, we highly appreciate the position and support of Kuwait toward the Iraqi people as well as the firm position towards the former regime and the help given to the Iraqi people in its resolve and determination to removing and changing it.

The major political forces, that today represent the basis for the Iraqi decision-making, whether in the Council of Representatives or in the cabinet, are fully committed to the close relationship with Kuwait and are working to upgrade this relationship and expand all its fields.

 

Paper / the Iraqi debts are an issue that, some believe, will be a hot flame during the coming period. What are the most important points of Iraq's future agenda with respect to this issue?

 

Al-Hakeem / Iraq is committed to the international resolutions and its obligations to the countries of the region and the world. It, thus, respects the Kuwaiti vision with regard to the debt issue, but at the same time, Iraq always hoped that this issue would be reconsidered.

 There is a question being submitted now to the Iraqi public opinion about dropping $ 110 billion of the foreign debts and keeping $ 20 billion that are related to Arab debts.

How can foreign countries take this step, while the Arab countries linger in take such decisions.

 The United Arab Emirates made an important step in this context, and this is what evokes respect and great appreciation in return, but we may find a special anticipation from Iraqis to Kuwait, which has specifically been distinguished in its relations with Iraq for well-known privacy and considerations.

Kuwait has stood, in an earlier time, to support the Iraqi people since 1991 till the present day, and the expectation might be greater with Kuwait than with others for the specificity and the excellence of this relationship.

 We wish that the situations would be examined and appropriate decisions taken, which are in the interest of the two countries.

 

Paper / you know that there is a widespread parliamentary and popular opposition in Kuwait for dropping debts. What is your comment?

 

Al-Hakeem / We respect and appreciate the viewpoints, what the members of the Umma Council say and the Kuwaiti public opinion, but what I am saying is that the relationship between the two countries at the governmental, public and parliamentary levels has deep roots and large, spacious and broad prospects in the future. 

Wherever we were able to remove what could be a pretext used by the extremists or the opponents for such a relation in this or that country, it would serve the common interests. Iraq is a promising land a fertile arena for the exchange of interests and is seen as a virgin, at present.

Kuwait may, whether through the government, the private sector, companies or investors,   contribute to the reconstruction and construction of Iraq.

 

Paper / there is an intention of the Iraqi government to request the cancellation of the debts.  Is there any specific date for the submission of this request formally?

 

Al-Hakeem/ Iraqi officials, at all levels, have expressed their wish and demand that Arab states would drop the debts. I do not know the size and value that this demand would be requested on papers that it could lead to a kind of embarrassment, but the issue was repeatedly submitted by the Iraqis to Kuwait and other Arab countries.

 This issue has clearly been submitted by the Iraqi Prime Minister Mr.  Nouri Al-Maliki at the meeting of neighboring countries held in Kuwait, and requested reconsidering this subject and the work for dropping the Iraqi debts.

 

 Paper / Kuwait will very soon send its ambassador to Baghdad.  Is there any official date fixed for this step?

 

Al-Hakeem / what we hear is that it might be announced during the forthcoming visit of His Highness the Prime Minister to Iraq, but I have not heard anything from the officials about it, and have not been officially told. Yet this is what we expect to be done.

 The nomination of the Kuwaiti ambassador to Baghdad as such is in itself an important step and we are grateful for Kuwait to send such a friendly letter and we hope to see that the Iraqi ambassador in Kuwait soon to strengthen the relations further.

 

Paper / after the nomination of the Kuwaiti ambassador to Baghdad, we did not find a similar step by the Iraqi side. Why?

 

Al-Hakeem / the problem is technical not political.  In fact, there is a list of a large number of ambassadors that have been approved by the Cabinet and the matter has been referred to the House of Representatives. Since the post of the ambassador is special, according to the Iraqi law the nomination of ambassadors should be approved by the House of Representatives.

     Now we have a shortage in the number of ambassadors, and along list of names is submitted before the House of Representatives, in front of which many vital and important laws such as the law of elections, next year's budget, the law of oil and gas and others are to be done.

Dealing with these issues, that have a real impact on the Iraqi arena and the political process, could have a kind of priority among the priorities of the House of Representatives. Upon the completion of the discussion over the list of ambassadors, we will be in front of a large number of them to fill in the blanks and for the diplomatic representation in many Arab and foreign countries.

 

Paper / what is the Iraqi-Kuwaiti talks agenda during the visit of His Highness the Prime Minister. Will the subjects of the debts and borders be discussed during that visit?

Al-Hakeem / of course, before the Prime Minister honors us with his visit, there will be committees from  both sides  to prepare an agenda for this visit, but it is natural for  the files of the common interest to be at the top of the agenda and debate about  how to strengthen the  relations and to address some outstanding issues.

Paper / Turning to the Iraqi issue with its international dimensions to ask about the Iraqi – American security pact and the expectations of signing it very soon, what do you say?

 

Al-Hakeem / There were long painful negotiations between the two teams, and the drafts, that at the beginning were greatly rejected from the Iraqi side, got developed.

This development in the drafts and the promotion of the Iraqi sovereignty in the texts was to achieve a significant development, but there are still many reservations from the Iraqi side.

A list of reservations with the latest draft has been handed over to the American side, which examined it to make their final opinion on the light of what will appear.  

If the Iraqi sovereignty and the demands of Iraqis have been achieved throughout a relationship based on full equality with the Americans, the stance would be positive towards this convention, which would be presented to the House of Representatives for approval, and if no response was noticed, there might be a reserved position taken regarding   this issue.

 

Paper / An Iraqi newspaper quoted Iraqi political blocs' agreement to sign the Security Pact with Washington in exchange for the return of Kuwait to Iraq. What is your comment?

 

Al-Hakeem / such statements are not worth commenting. Iraq today is an open country and has a diversity of powers and the mass media.

There must be distinction between Iraq yesterday, where no statements were launched save that of the authority and the political leadership at that time, and Iraq today where there is a great openness and a wide freedom that all express their views.

Of course, what represents the opinion of the Iraqi government and major political forces is surely far a way from this logic.

 

Paper / some Iraqi sides are still complaining from the Iranian influence in Iraq and the so-called Syrian leniency for the entry of militants into this country. How do you assess the Syrian and Iranian roles today with regard to the situation in Iraq?

 

Al-Hakeem / I think that we must proceed from the promotion and development of the Iraqi experiment inside Iraq, that the bigger the national reconciliation becomes, the stronger the Iraqi government and the more effective state institutions become.

 This will encourage all parties to respect the Iraqi sovereignty and not to interfere in the internal affairs. We, in addition, always call to keep such assessments away from the political backgrounds and to dismiss the focus on certain countries not others.

 In regard to the interventions or alienation and attendance, dealing with the Iraqi reality is sometimes based on political backgrounds, not realistic ones, and such complex and difficult files can not be dealt with through the mass media.

 I think we need to open a frank, constructive and deep dialogue with the regional and world countries to brief them about the Iraqi experiment and about our concerns towards the relationship with various countries.

They, in their turn, should brief us about their concerns and the elements that raise their concerns.

We can, through clearing the concerns of both parties and building a network of economic interests and political ties, change the relationship of distrust and mutual accusation relations to trusted relations, common interests and hard work to build a system of regional and international relations that would promote stability in the region and the world.

Hence, we stress the principles of national sovereignty and the non-interference in the internal affairs, supporting Iraq and the independence of the Iraqi political decision.

This thing is unanimously agreed upon inside Iraq.

We assess our relationship with any other country on this basis and these established criteria in the evaluation of this relationship.

 I think that the focus on these two countries in particular is sometimes built on   a political background of the regional axes and the political conflicts in the region. In Iraq we do not want to be a party in these axes, and we want to be friends for all, open up to everyone and share interests.

  We are not about to be involved in the policy of axes or to stand be a certain party against another.

We do not think that this would serve Iraq or the regional interests in general.

We support the idea of reaching a system and strategic vision in a system that unites the regional countries and get them into a united system to sit at one table and to consider the risks, worries, concerns and interests associated with the region, that no one can cancel the other or distance him.

We are destined to live together in this area and we would better sit at one table to deal with matters away from the political axes.

 We want to achieve victory for our country, our sovereignty, our independence and our internal interests. We are keen not to interfere in the internal affairs of any country and we wish that all the countries take into account this privacy and not interfere in the Iraqi affairs.

 

Paper / from time to time, accusations are launched talking about the role of the Lebanese Hezbollah party in Iraq. How do you judge the validity of these accusations?

 

Al-Hakeem / I, personally, have not seen clear and precise reports indicating the presence of the Lebanese «Hezbollah» in Iraq, and we heard in more than one occasion the denial of Hezbollah to this issue.

 I think that every place has its own circumstances and therefore it is logical that the political forces in each country embark on treating their internal problems and rebuilding their country.

We are interested in Iraq, the political forces in Lebanon are interested in Lebanon, the Kuwaiti forces are interested in Kuwait and so forth, that each country has its political circumstances and specificities and we respect the specificities of all.

Paper / Some see the recent speech of Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi about the extension of the Shiite towards the Sunni and then the responses of some Shiite religious authorities as establishing for a sectarian war more clearly between the two parties.  How did read the position of Sheikh Qaradawi?

 

Al-Hakeem / We respect Sheikh Al-Qaradawi's personality, which has its command in the Muslim world and therefore we respect his views, but regarding this issue, I think that this statement was a product of considerable lack of information in assessing the facts on the ground.

On the ground the Arab are Arabs, Shiites and Sunnis, and the Arab Shiites are proud of their Arabism and are supportive for the reconciliation, harmony and the Islamic Arab brotherhood in the Arab homeland, and therefore suspecting the patriotism is questioning the loyalty and the belongingness of a large section such as Shiite Arabs to the nation.

 I do not think that this is in the Arabic or Islamic interests and it does not go in line with the principle of good will and openness of Muslims to each other.

This is what we clearly find in the religious texts.

 I do not find this logic, context; questioning and doubtful look in the beliefs of others could be the right steps in building strong Islamic Arab faithful relations.

 We have to convene if there were concerns, fears or uncertainty, and we have to deal with these things on the table of dialogue in the forums between Muslims and the meetings for the approximation between the Islamic doctrines.

 I do not think that issuing Media statements in this way and mobilizing souls here and there would be in the Arab and Islamic interests.

 

Paper / do you have a word to the Kuwaitis?

Al-Hakeem / we carry a message of friendship, love and respect for the brotherly people of Kuwait and we were always proud of this relationship and we are keen to promote it.

Imam Sayed Mohsen Al-Hakeem was very careful since the sixties to build this relationship.

The Niche Martyr Ayatollah Sayed Mohammad Baqer Al-Hakeem, for many years, used to spend days of the month of Ramadan in Kuwait and communicated with the Kuwaiti leadership and people.

We are still committed to this course and believe that our interest as Iraqis is in building a strong relationship with Kuwait and the regional countries.

 I think also that the Kuwaiti interest is in building such relations, and that we must work all together to strengthen and consolidate these relations.