BAMRO

Iraq’s stability and hard-won gains require robust support amid concerns of shrinking civic space, postponed elections, and an unfolding climate emergency, the top UN official in the country told the Security Council on Thursday.

“Now is not the time to be complacent, or to take for granted that Iraq has turned a corner,” said the UN Special Representative for Iraq Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.

Achievements range from fighting corruption to advancing energy independence, said Ms. Hennis-Plasschaert, who also heads the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), briefing on recent developments.

But going forward, she said, critical actions must tackle outstanding issues, including forging an agreement on a functioning budget and ensure the long-awaited provincial council elections occur by the end of 2023.

Baghdad-Erbil nearing brink
Turning to the Kurdistan region, she said disagreements between the two ruling parties in recent months drove the region “close to the brink” amid an increasingly reckless and irresponsible political situation.

Among a range of concerns, she raised the issue of the long-overdue parliamentary elections.

“Time is of the essence,” she said, adding that agreement on outstanding electoral issues must urgently be found. “Another postponement would be detrimental to public trust.”

Rise in tensions
Despite repeated declarations of commitment from Baghdad and Erbil, she remained disappointed over the scant progress made so far, in implementing the 2020 Sinjar Agreement, which outlined a road map for reconstructing the north of the country.

“Such stagnation creates further space for spoilers to exploit the situation to their own ends, and it blocks thousands of displaced Sinjaris from returning to their areas of origin,” she said.

A recent rise in tensions between communities in Sinjar was in large part further fuelled by online disinformation targeting the Yazidi community.

While local leaders from all sides have collectively worked to dispel this spike in tensions, she said, challenges to reconciliation will persist until meaningful steps are taken, including those towards a unified administration, stable security structures and reconstruction.

Be it the budget, questions surrounding hydrocarbon resources, disputed territories, the implementation of the Sinjar Agreement, or any other outstanding issue for that matter, she said it remains essential to move beyond ad hoc engagements between Baghdad and Erbil.