FOREIGN
RELATIONS
With the fall of Saddam Hussein and the Ba'ath regime, Iraq has taken steps toward re-engagement on the international stage. Iraq currently has diplomatic representation in 54 countries around the world, including 3 permanent Missions to the United Nations in New York, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva and the Arab League in Cairo. 43 countries have diplomatic representation in Iraq,
The Republic of Iraq belongs to the following international organizations: United Nations (UN); Arab League (AL); World Bank (WB); International Monetary Fund (IMF); International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Nonaligned Movement (NAM); Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC); Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC); Interpol; World Health Organization (WHO); G-19; G-77; Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (ABEDA); Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD); Arab Monetary Fund (AMF); Council of Arab Economic Unity (CAEU); Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD); International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO); International Community for Radionuclide Metrology (ICRM); International Development Association (IDA); International Development Bank (IDB); International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD); International Finance Corporation (IFC); International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS); International Labor Organization (ILO); International Maritime Organization (IMO); International Mobile Satellite Organization (IMSO) Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC); International Organization for Standardization (ISO); International Telecommunications Satellite Organization (ITSO); International Telecommunication Union (ITU); Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC); Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA); United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD); United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO); United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UN-ESCWA); United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO); World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)Universal Postal Union (UPU); World Customs Organization (WCO); World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU); World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO); World Meteorological Organization (WMO); World Trade Organization (WTO) observer.
U.S.-IRAQI
RELATIONS
The focus of United States policy in Iraq remains on helping the Iraqi people build a constitutional, representative government that respects the rights of all Iraqis and has security forces capable of maintaining order and preventing the country from becoming a safe haven for terrorists and foreign fighters. The ultimate goal is an Iraq that is peaceful, united, stable, democratic, and secure, with institutions capable of providing just governance and security for all Iraqis and is an ally in the war against terrorism. U.S. forces remain in Iraq (under a UN Security Council mandate) as part of the Multi-National Force-Iraq to assist the Government of Iraq in training its security forces, as well as to work in partnership with the Government of Iraq to combat forces that seek to derail Iraq's progression toward full democracy. The U.S. Government is carrying out a multibillion-dollar program to assist in the reconstruction of Iraq.
DEFENSE
The Iran-Iraq War ended with Iraq sustaining the largest military structure in
the Middle East, with more than 70 divisions in its army and an air force of
over 700 modern aircraft. Losses during the 1990 invasion of Kuwait and
subsequent expulsion of Iraqi forces from Kuwait in 1991 by a UN coalition
resulted in the reduction of Iraq's ground forces to 23 divisions and air force
to less than 300 aircraft.
When major combat operations ended in April 2003, the Iraqi Army disintegrated,
and its installations were destroyed by pilfering and looting. The Coalition
Provisional Authority (CPA) officially dissolved the Iraqi military and Ministry
of Defense on May 23, 2003. On August 7, 2003, the CPA established the New Iraqi
Army as the first step toward the creation of the national self-defense force of
post-Saddam Hussein Iraq. Support for the manning, training, and equipping of
Iraq's security forces is led by the Multi-National Security Transition
Command-Iraq (MNSTC-I). In addition to defense forces, the Ministry of Interior,
with the help of the MNSTC-I, is training and equipping civilian police forces
to establish security and stability, primarily through combating the nation-wide
insurgency. Initially under the command and control of the Multi-National
Forces-Iraq (MNF-I) command, in 2006 police and Iraqi Army units began to
transition to Iraqi control. By November 2007, all of the original ten Iraq Army
divisions had completed the transfer to Iraq Ground Forces Command. The process
of transferring provinces to Provincial Iraqi Control (PIC) began in July 2007,
when Muthanna became the first province where Iraq Security Forces took the
leading role of security in a province. In December 2007, Basrah became the
ninth of Iraq's eighteen provinces to transfer to PIC.
U.S. Embassy--Baghdad
Ambassador--Ryan Clark Crocker
Embassy website: http://iraq.usembassy.gov/
