“Iraq will become a normal country again and will be dealt with as a sovereign state,” he adds. Among the negative effects, he says: “Now all the countries that Iraq is indebted to can ask for payment.”
The Iraqi National Movement (al-Iraqiya), a coalition representing Sunni Arabs in Iraq, says that worries are understood, but the sanctions had to go.
“Although there are fears that lifting the restrictions will free the hands of the Iraqi government against the minorities, this is not an excuse for keeping the imposed sanctions on Iraq,” says Haydar Mulla, an al-Iraqiya MP. He says that the lifting of sanctions has been the wish of all Iraqis.
For the Kurds, the important question is how Iraq will deal with the Kurdistan Region after the lifting of sanctions. Will it use dialogue or military force in solving the issues with Kurdistan Region?
“The lifting of sanctions will allow the Iraqi army to purchase advanced weapons, we should all work on ending those sanctions,” says Sarwar Qadir, a military expert. “The Iraqi army is the army of all the Iraqis, and purchasing heavy and advanced weapons will not threaten the Kurdistan Region,” he believes.
Dindar Zebari, special representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in the UN, believes that lifting the sanctions does not mean Iraq is no longer under the observation of the international community.
“Iraq will remain under observation and it has to respect the role of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI),” says Zebari, who adds, “Iraq is still not a stable country so the UN delegation will keep its presence there.”
Comments are closed.