‘U.S. Is Our Ally,’ Iraqi Says

Warning against the dangers of an early withdrawal of American troops, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Mahmood Mohammed Zebari last night stressed the importance of America’s friendship in bringing stability to Iraq.

In a speech at the Institute of Politics, Zebari, a Kurd, drew attention to the optimism of the Iraqi people and the successes of the Iraqi government, while acknowledging that the country still faces many hurdles.

“The U.S. is our ally in our pursuit of freedom and human dignity,” he said. “I salute the soldiers standing side-by-side with us against a dark, totalitarian ideology.”

Zebari emphasized that, in principle, he did not want foreign troops on Iraqi soil. But he said that “as a result of mistakes made during the last four years, we have a difficult situation.”

A premature withdrawal of American troops, Zebari said, could result in higher levels of sectarian violence, regional warfare in the Middle East, the resurgence of the terrorist network al-Qaeda, and the disintegration of Iraq.

“The consequences will be better if the U.S. stays until the mission is done,” Zebari told The Crimson before his speech. “Yet we acknowledge that the American presence is not open-ended and we will see troops withdraw this year.”

In his speech, Zebari said Iraq is a primary battleground in the fight against terrorism—much like Germany represented the front lines of the Cold War.

In the international arena, Zebari stressed the importance of negotiations on bilateral security arrangements with major world powers.

“This redefinition of the mission of American troops and assertion of Iraqi sovereignty will help relieve pressure on the U.S.,” Zebari said, “[but] we need equipment and other forms of support from the international community.”

A week after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s controversial visit to Columbia University, Zebari addressed the issue of Iranian involvement in Iraq in a question-and-answer session following his speech.

“I am not happy about the role of our neighbors in Iraqi internal affairs and the rising tension between the U.S. and Iran,” said Zebari, “but Iraq and Iran are destined to live together by geography.”

Responding to a question about the U.S. Senate’s nonbinding resolution last week that proposed to petition Iraq into federal states, Zebari said that there was a difference between a federal Iraq and a divided Iraq.

“The Iraqi people want federal regions, but not a division of the country by sectarian regions,” he said. “How would you draw the lines?”

After the speech, several audience members appeared to be supportive of Zebari’s remarks.

“I thought it was a very thoughtful, sensible address,” said James A. Leach, the director of the Institute of Politics. “Student interaction was very reasoned, and there was an aspect of civility that was more important than substance.”

Zebari’s speech challenged the views of some.

Michael A. Baskin ’11 said that Zebari’s remarks led him to change his view whether American troops should stay in Iraq.

“Before, the answer would have been no, but for selfish reasons,” he said. “He has definitely made me reconsider my positions on the issue.”

Zebari, who was in the United States for the meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, came at the invitation of Meghan L. O’Sullivan, a fellow at the Institute of Politics and a former deputy national security adviser to President Bush on Iraq and Afghanistan.

Zebari, who previously spoke at Harvard in 1991 and 1998, said he decided to return to the University “to explain the situation in my country face-to-face with Harvard students, giving a perspective that is different from the media.”

During the day, the foreign minister took a tour of the University and the Boston area.

“My favorite part of the day,” Zebari said, “was taking the Duck Tour of Boston.”