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Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

Welcome to the Neno's Place!

Neno's Place Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality


Neno

I can be reached by phone or text 8am-7pm cst 972-768-9772 or, once joining the board I can be reached by a (PM) Private Message.

Established in 2006 as a Community of Reality

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    Douglas Silliman reveals the secrets of the Iraqi delegation's visit to Washington and makes recomme

    Rocky
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    delegation - Douglas Silliman reveals the secrets of the Iraqi delegation's visit to Washington and makes recomme Empty Douglas Silliman reveals the secrets of the Iraqi delegation's visit to Washington and makes recomme

    Post by Rocky Sat 25 Feb 2023, 5:53 am

    [size=30]Douglas Silliman reveals the secrets of the Iraqi delegation's visit to Washington and makes recommendations regarding the dollar
    [ltr]2023.02.25 - 10:33[/ltr]
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    Baghdad - people  
    The former US ambassador to Iraq, Douglas Silliman, revealed the secrets of the Iraqi delegation's visit to Washington a while ago, the results that resulted from the visit, and recommendations that stress the implementation of Baghdad's commitments regarding the dollar market with sincerity, stressing, "If Washington feels sufficient commitment from the Sudanese and his government to the agenda set by the foreign minister, it will not be It is unlikely to invite the prime minister to visit Washington.  
      
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    The following is the text of what was written by the former US ambassador and director of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, followed by “NAS” (February 25, 2023):  
      
    Fuad Hussein, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, visited Washington from February 9-15. As the first high-ranking representative of the new Iraqi prime minister, Muhammad al-Sudani, Hussein came to the United States seeking to broaden and deepen “financial and economic relations” with the United States, stating that his focus on economic issues — not security — showed that U.S.-Iraqi relations were “healthy” and he had I reached a new stage.  
      
    In addition to more pressure, a letter dated February 2 from the new chairman of the US House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee on Baghdad's relations with the Kurdistan Regional Government, and another letter dated February 10 from three other members of Congress, accused the Sudanese government of siding with the regime. Iranian complicity with money laundering operations carried out by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in Iraq, and discrimination against Iraqi Kurds; The two letters showed that many figures in Washington remain focused on the negative — or at least the politically charged — aspects of relations with Iraq. From the Iraqi point of view, Hussein arrived in the wake of the currency crisis and the sharp decline in the value of the Iraqi dinar as a result of the application by the Central Bank of Iraq of the new controls imposed by the US Treasury on the exchange of dollars in the Iraqi market.  
      
    Hussein's choice to go to Washington was a wise choice given his decades of political experience and friendship with high-ranking US officials in four US administrations. During his week-long visit, Hussein met with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Affairs John Kerry, USAID Administrator Samantha Power, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Ademo, and other US administration officials. With Blinken, Hussein chaired the Cabinet-level Senior Coordination Committee for the US-Iraq Strategic Framework Agreement, which National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan also attended. Hussein has also attended meetings in Congress, spoken to US business representatives, spoken before think tanks, and appeared in US and international media.  
      
    To refute Washington's powerful narrative about the Sudanese government's complicity in expanding Iranian influence in Iraq, Hussein pointed to the prime minister's actions that run counter to Iranian goals in Iraq, particularly his public statement in January about his support for the continued presence of US military forces in Iraq.  
      
    Hussein came to Washington for several specific purposes. First, he wanted to avoid imposing US sanctions on Iraq over its dollar market, trade with Iran, importing natural gas and electricity from it, and business dealings with Russia. Regarding Iran, he has had some success arguing that Iraq needs access to US dollars to conduct legitimate international trade, and that Iraq depends on Iran for more than 40% of its electricity production. US sanctions could cut off Iranian gas and electricity supplies, which could have catastrophic effects on Iraq and the region. Meanwhile, other members of his entourage worked with U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve officials to craft the technical details by which the CBI would monitor the final destination of U.S. dollar deals in Iraq to bolster confidence in reducing U.S. dollars reaching Iran.  
      
    Similarly, the delegation argued that Russia is an important part of the Iraqi economy, so Washington should ease restrictions on deals with Russia. For example, the Russian oil giant Rosneft bought a 60% stake in the main oil export pipeline in Iraqi Kurdistan in 2017, and in 2018 committed to financing the gas pipeline in the Kurdistan Region. However, it seems that Washington did not find the arguments for the need to show flexibility in deals with Russia convincing.  
      
    Secondly, Hussein sought more investment from the US government and the private sector to capture the large amount of gas that is being burned in Iraq, and thus, wasted. Hussein argued that Iraq spends $4 billion each year importing natural gas and electricity from Iran, and wants the support of the US government and the private sector to replace those imports, and use the money saved to provide services to Iraqis. Some members of the entourage expressed their willingness to re-examine past gas acquisition deals that had faced political opposition or had disappeared within the Iraqi bureaucracy. The joint statement showed the US government's strong support for the continued development of the energy sector in Iraq.  
      
    Third, behind the scenes, Hussein and his entourage sought to diminish administration and congressional concerns that al-Sudani was the result of Iranian support. They argued that political support for the prime minister comes not only from pro-Iranian political parties, but also from the two main Kurdish parties, Sunni parties, Christians, and moderate Shiites. In addition to al-Sudani's declared support for US forces, the Iraqi delegation noted that al-Sudani's early policy focused on providing services to Iraqis and took steps to combat corruption. Moderately, the delegation lobbied for an invitation for al-Sudani to visit the White House in the not-too-distant future as a sign of Washington's support, arguing that this would help the prime minister pursue policies such as economic and administrative reform that do not enjoy the support of pro-Iranian parties and militias.  
      
    However, Hussein's greatest achievement was simply to put Iraq back on the foreign policy map in a positive way. The senior US officials involved in the SCC, and Hussein's intense public debates on Iraq, appear to have persuaded many in the administration to review how to advance the longstanding US policy goals of a prosperous, democratic, and sovereign Iraq.  
      
    In the aftermath of his visit, Baghdad and Washington will need to take concrete steps to build confidence.  
      
    On the Iraqi side, Baghdad must faithfully implement its commitments on the dollar market. To broaden the agenda beyond financial flow, Baghdad should consider repeating more trips to Washington by cabinet-level officials, particularly those with economic portfolios. It would be wise for Baghdad to select cabinet officials capable of convincingly arguing that Iraq is committed not only to signing a memorandum of understanding with the private sector, but also to doing business, perhaps with the full implementation of a number of test cases for notable businesses. Finally, tangible progress on issues facing Iraq's minorities—particularly Iraqi Kurds, Yazidis, and Christians—could garner greater political support from Washington.  
      
    While Washington remains skeptical, it should consider reciprocal visits by senior US officials, advocating for further discussions of Baghdad's economic agenda, particularly with regard to gas acquisitions and climate issues. If Washington feels sufficient commitment from the Sudanese and his government to the agenda set by the foreign minister, it would not be out of the question to invite the prime minister to visit Washington.  
      
    Quoted from: "agsiw"  
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