Special Iraqi News Post 5-2-22

Prime Minister Mustafa Al -Kazemi For {Al -Sabah}: Trust And Credibility Is The Password In Our Internal And External Work

Saturday, April 30, 2022 3364

Our dialogue with the Prime Minister, Mr. Mustafa Al -Kazemi, is extremely important due to the political circumstance that surrounds Iraq today, after the recent parliamentary elections led to results that were not decisive to create a larger bloc, so the formation of the government is very late, which cast a shadow over the political movement in general, and he called fears of That the political blockage that has a security and economic consequences have their lives.

In addition, the regional and international scenes are full of accelerating events, some of which are dangerous, such as the Ukrainian crisis, which Iraq is not immune to its consequences,

while others carry a breakthrough body like Iranian-Saudi researchers that Baghdad was incubating, and

it is a good gesture that would prove to everyone that another different scene prevails in it Harmony between the countries of the region is a possible thing, and

Iraq - as the initiator and the host, and the Prime Minister, Mr. Al -Kazemi personally, had the most prominent role in the contract and the success of these discussions, which ended in its fifth round recently amid the optimism of everyone.

It is the first dialogue of {Al -Sabah} with the Prime Minister, and therefore it was natural that all files were present in it, from the security file to the economic to Iraq’s relations with its brothers and its role as the most appropriate place to meet the fine and bring their views closer.

Of course, the atmosphere of political blockage, the foresight of the next stage and its entitlements had a tangible share in this dialogue.

We extend our sincere thanks to the Prime Minister for his keenness to deduct part of his precious time and communicate with citizens through "Al -Sabah".

We also thank him for the extensive answers that put clarification points on our questions.

Editor Baghdad: Morning

Morning: You achieved success in holding elections. What is your assessment of the conditions of political blockage and post -election complications?

Prime Minister: We must first differentiate between the constitutional context and the crisis of the political process.

I imagine that the real blockage is not to develop the political process, which was formed on the basis of balances and visions that are not necessarily valid for every time, but some were created by the conditions of the country.

And I previously talked that the current crisis is in essence a "confidence crisis", because the political forces can get out of the current political blockage and make sacrifices or concessions here or there, if there is common confidence that frames the Iraqi political situation.

So, I think the solution is not in political speeches, but rather in an attempt to restore confidence.

And trust, here, does not mean the necessity of participating or forming a government or not.

Rather, restoring confidence means that everyone in the government or in the opposition promises that the constitution, laws, national principles and state institutions are the basic pillars that are based on it.

We need a new atmosphere and deep discussions regarding the overall political situation, and among this is the agreement on fundamental constitutional amendments in order to start the steps to restore confidence, and then end the political blockages, whether today or in the future.

White Paper

Morning: Do you think that the white paper managed to overcome financial difficulties? Is it possible to pass this paper to complete what you started with?

The Prime Minister: We must first place that the current government, which was honored by its chairman, came in an exceptional situation, and it had a basic and main task that is to reach free and fair elections, and (the current government) was not required to conduct economic transformations in an economic structure that accumulates the defect or proposal Great economic reforms.

Everyone remembers the exceptional circumstances in which the government came: a suffocating economic crisis and low oil prices, and the "Corona" epidemic that affected all countries of the world and in all aspects of life in an unprecedented way.

In fact, I was from the first month of the government's life, calling for the provision of the necessary funds to pay the female employees and retirees, and the beneficiaries of social welfare allocations, the basic state expenses, the procedures for combating the Corona epidemic and basic security requirements, which are up to 10-12 trillion dinars per month.

On the other hand, the state's resources at the time did not exceed, especially in the oil sector, only a trillion dinars due to the collapse of oil prices.

Yes, we passed this bitter reality with all possible ways and in all available methods, but I cannot be a false witness in front of our people, and I am not the type that bets on deceiving people and misleading public opinion. So I said and I always say that the economic structure in Iraq needs a comprehensive reform in order to face the future and prepare for all crises and obstacles if it is repeated.

During two years, we succeeded in achieving the highest economic growth rate at the level of Arab countries, according to the reports of the International Monetary Fund, which expected the economic growth rate in Iraq to reach 9.5% during the years 2022 and 2023.

This growth came based on reformist beginnings, we do not say that it was without errors, but it established a scientific reformist approach that put his daughters the white paper.

Unfortunately, many who criticized the white paper did not incur the trouble of reading it and did not try to discuss it, and in the end it is not a sacred text, but rather an attempt to save the economy of this country, and this (white) paper is subject to modification, addition and modernization according to local and international economic developments.

We said that the continued dependence on oil, which funds 95% of the country's general budget, is a major crime and a prejudice that cannot be accepted against this generation in Iraq and future generations,

so we tried to reduce the dependence of the budget on oil and we partially succeeded, and this reduction must continue to be the oil resources in favor of the generations fund and not For a non -strategic monthly consumption.

The Exchange Rate Of The Dollar

Morning: In this regard, how did the dollar exchange rate change in economic reforms affected? How did you encounter its repercussions?

Prime Minister: It must be said that we have not put in our economic work any electoral or promotional goals, and we say that real reform will not be achieved without suffering and damage, and this is the reality.

But with a balanced, balanced reform that needs treatments for the side damage caused by important decisions.

Therefore, in the budget in 2021, for example, in conjunction with the change of the dollar exchange rate, we raised social welfare allocations in the General Budget Law to 3 trillion dinars, and

this number was special for the groups that we expected to be the most affected based on specialized studies, and we were not intended on One, but we were treating the negative effects of the high exchange rate and improving the living conditions of low -income people.

However, the brothers in the former House of Representatives refused to listen to our payments in this regard and reduce the amount to less than 700 billion dinars only.

They also reduced the investment budget, whose goal was to revive the labor market, move projects, rotate the wheel of the local economy, and activate the role of the private sector.

That is why we say again, by returning to the concept of confidence in political action, that the country cannot advance without building confidence on all levels, especially in the relationship between the executive and legislative authorities to achieve harmony in the steps of reform and prevent collisions or jurisprudence that may have results Negative.

Everyone knows that changing the exchange rate was not a qualitative decision or the decision of this government, but was preceded by studies that lasted for years, and all political forces and parliament were shared before taking it, based on the fact that oil prices may not meet in times of crises minimal borders from the requirements of our people, and that we are You need to work together to evaluate the Iraqi economy.

Outdated Weapon

Morning: You started the way to address the escape weapon, but there are those who see that nothing has been achieved in this file?

Prime Minister: This is a accusation of two attributes, which are credibility and fairness.

Credibility because whoever calls it first is to review all the steps taken by the government in the file of the escalating weapon,

and that it invokes the fact that this is not a temporary and immediate decision taken by the authorities, but rather a thorny and complex file and contains political, social and religious dimensions,

and the government must confront it with several levels and a good and accumulated vision In the security action.

And whoever reviews the circumstances in 2020 with credibility and away from the atmosphere of opportunism and review,

he must admit that a major development in the security file has occurred at all levels, starting from resetting the outputs of the social crisis produced by the popular demonstrations between 2019 and 2020, and then restore the confidence that was broken.

Between the people and security institutions, by drying the sources of terrorism, breaking its thorn, besieging the outlaws, and working to apply the law to everyone without exception.

And I say that this accusation is also fair because each fair must review the activities of killing, terrorism, organized crime and security turmoil in 2019-2020 and compare it to the reality that we are now living in.

We do not have the magic stick to change reality with one blow, but we laid the foundations of normal life, and these foundations were achieved after many steps and several legal accounts.

Today there are officers, affiliates and employees who are sentenced to death or life after the law was applied to them, and there are criminals who are tried because of their violation of the law as is the case with the death teams in Basra Governorate and the murder of Hisham Al -Hashemi and organized crime gangs and many others, not to mention the elaborating terrorism.

The question here: Is all this enough? Answer: No.

Certainly we need more work to restore things completely and subjugate everyone to the law.

The other question: Wasn't anything to be achieved in this file?

Here I leave the answer not to political jurisprudence or media shows, but rather to the Iraqi people, which has become more adhering to the law and more adhering to the state and understanding the complex conditions and the mines field in which this government walked, and therefore, I do not ask for media or political fairness because I am certain and confident that our people are the fair.

Farewell Tweet

Al -Sabah: After the elections, you launched a tweet that the media counted a farewell  tweet, and that you have accomplished what you have and you will not engage in politics again, and the proof is not to compete in the elections. Was it really a farewell tweet?

The Prime Minister: I say that I personally, and I take responsibility, opposed and rejected all the requests that wanted me to participate in the elections, and some of them were from my work team, and from political forces and deputies.

Everyone believed that the normal context was the prime minister's participation in the elections and a difference in parliament.

But I said at the time and repeated that day, I was tasked with forming a government in light of a grinding social, political and economic crisis that threatened all of Iraq, and the goal was to reach a special road map leading to fair and transparent elections and leading the country to safety.

The decision I made at the moment of assignment that this government is organized for the elections and not a party to it.

If I had participated in the elections, I would have broken the covenant in front of the people, and I claim that I do not nurture the covenants.

With regard to the first part of the question, his answer is also related to his second part.

The tweet that it launched translates the basic principles of any democratic system, which is that the elections represent the natural way out of political crises, and that the mechanisms of forming government must be completed as defined by the constitution.

A government has headed for a transitional stage and has done what satisfies my conscience in performing tasks at this stage. As for the political level, the conversation is still early in this regard.

Social Activities

Morning: Recently, it has been observed that extensive activities of the prime minister are at different levels. Is this a prelude to a new political role?

Prime Minister: In fact, the activities I do are part of my natural duty as the Prime Minister, and there is a continuous work at all levels that has never stopped.

But regarding social activities and meeting people, the truth is that I admit that I am more than them for a personal reason, because I sometimes address the personal pressures that I face in government work, whether political or security, by returning to people by calling them or visiting them in their places.

This represents a personal stability for me. And if I am allowed to say that it is more like treatment.

Our people and our people are good and citizenship and suffer a lot, but they are also smart in every sense of the word, and they are honest, and for this they know who is honest with them and who is not sincere.

Balance 2022

Al -Sabah: Being a caretaker government you face obstacles related to the preparation of the 2022 budget, Parliament gave you the authority to prepare it, but there are those who say that you will bring it to the next government?

The Prime Minister: This issue was discussed during the past period, and we believe that it is better if there was a full -powered government that submitted a draft budget law in 2022 with the conditions and specifications required by the economic reform project, transformations and political and economic challenges taking place in Iraq and the world.

As for its deportation to the next government, it depends on the speed of the formation of that government, and there are immediate legal solutions through which the damages that occur due to the absence of the budget can be overcome.

Food Security Law

Morning: The above applies to the Food Security Law. You supported this law as the absence of the 2022 budget, what is the accuracy of that?

The Prime Minister: The truth is that preparing this law and presenting it to the House of Representatives was due to the global economic crisis caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine and the high oil prices, and thus the high prices of commodities and services globally and the inability to legislate the budget at the present time, and for this the "food security" law will be possible The government is to overcome the obstacles of the current crisis and provide the cover to support the poor classes, support the ration card and finance many strategic projects threatened with suspension due to lack of financing.

The Password

Al -Sabah: What is the password through which you were able to restore Iraq to its distinguished Arab, regionally and global situation?

And how did you achieve this difficult equation by establishing good relations with all the important countries for Iraq without exception?

Prime Minister: If I may use the term "password", then this word is the word that I use at the internal level, which is trust and credibility as well.

Some understood politics as a opportunistic project, and this is a completely wrong concept. I believe that politics has many moral aspects, and the most important of these aspects are building on participants and making confidence.

A country cannot grow naturally away from its neighbors, and all countries of the world must have good and sound relations with everyone.

Iraq, may God love him, is an important Geosus location in the region and the world, and this site requires us to be a meeting point and not a point of intersection.

Unfortunately, we were a point of intersection for decades before 2003, and we reached a dangerous border with the threat of Iraq to be a square for a direct war between different countries, so we tried to devote the concept of convergence.

By the way, we did nothing other than what the Iraqi constitution mentioned, which stipulated that Iraq retain balanced relations with other countries and move away from the policy of international axes, and that it is not a source of threat to its neighbors and the world and the establishment of external relations based on interest and mutual respect,

in addition to all of this we tried to build these relations In a state in a state with a state and an individual institutional manner, thank God we were able to achieve distinguished relations with all the countries that have touched the seriousness of Iraq from the visions and projects that are based on partnership in interests, and refused to turn Iraq into a battlefield,

but we tried to create a positive healthy atmosphere with everyone that leads In conclusion to create investment opportunities and economic integration.

Work is still ongoing in the file of external relations and it needs more effort to complete what we started with.

Mediation Between Iran And Saudi Arabia

Al -Sabah: You have made great efforts in achieving the rapprochement between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic in Iran.

How much development on this mediation, and are there future rounds?

Prime Minister: Yes, Iraq has a direct interest in achieving understandings between the countries of the region and achieving regional stability.

And because we have good relations with the two parties and with different regional and international parties, we were able to find a positive dialogue atmosphere on the land of Iraq, many of which were not announced.

Brothers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic deal with the file of dialogue with high responsibility and the requirements of the current situation of the region, and

we are confident that the understanding is soon, God willing, and there is a true real breakthrough in relations between all countries of the region, supported by a firm conviction and Silmah that the future of the region depends on the beginning Looking at it as a system of converging interests, not crossed, and that this system cannot devote himself to economic construction and catch up with global development without solving its problems and zeroing its crises.    https://alsabaah.iq/63978/