Opening Remarks
Mr President,
Honourable Members of the European Parliament, I welcome this timely opportunity to join you today.
The military campaign to retake Mosul is a crucial step in defeating Da’esh as a military force and bringing an end to Da’esh rule, which has had such disastrous consequences for the people of the region, and continues to pose a threat to all of us.
The atrocities committed by Da’esh, including the killings of innocent civilians in and around Mosul, over the past days are a reminder, if a reminder was needed, of the complete depravity of this organisation.
Whilst over the past days there has been progress in the military campaign, we need to be aware that this is an extremely complex operation which will need endurance, perseverance and patience.
There are bound to be setbacks. Many fears and concerns have been expressed about the conduct and consequences of the campaign.
These are real and valid concerns and they require all of us to watch the events on the ground closely.
At the same time, there are two reasons that give me cause for cautious optimism, at least in this opening phase of the campaign, which I would like to share with you.
The first is that the military campaign is based on comprehensive planning and coordination between the federal government, the government of the Kurdistan region and the Global Coalition.
This has led to improved political ties between Baghdad and Erbil.
It has seen the Iraqi army enter Kurdish territories for the first time in 25 years with the full agreement of the Kurdistan region.
This was unimaginable even a few months ago.
The second reason is that we are confident that the federal government under PM al-Abadi has taken on board the message concerning the need to protect civilians and for the Iraqi army to enter Mosul as a liberator, not an occupying force.
Not only that, it is now the Iraqi government which is the most vocal advocate of the protection of civilians with government instructions to its forces and to the UN and the humanitarian community reflecting that approach.
This helps to explains why the Shia militia, with the Peshmerga, have been ordered to keep out of the campaign for the city centre.
It is the national institutions of the Iraqi army and the federal police, backed by Sunni tribes that will fight for the city.
Again, a year ago this seemed an unlikely scenario. But as I said, we need to keep a watchful eye. You are all aware of the humanitarian situation and concerns about massive displacement.
The way hostilities will be conducted, will have a huge impact on Mosul citizens’ safety, on the perception of the campaign and on civilian infrastructure, and on returns and reconciliation.
We also need to bear in mind that the behaviour of both Da’esh and the militias is inherently unpredictable and will need to be managed as the campaign develops.
Currently, the EU is ensuring the delivery of principled lifesaving humanitarian assistance for ALL civilians most in need, whoever and wherever they are, which is our top priority.
To date, we have allocated €134 million to respond to the needs of Iraqi internally displaced persons.
Equipment is pre-positioned and humanitarian contingency planning has been done jointly with the Iraqi Government and the UN.
We are also ready to respond to the stabilisation challenges that post-Da’esh Mosul poses.
Stabilisation after the military campaign is as important as the military campaign itself.
One area on which the EU is very proactive is the removal of Improvised Explosive Devices which is a pre-condition for the return of the Internally Displaced People.
I’m confident that Da´esh will be defeated on the battlefield.
But we can only defeat extremist ideology by addressing root causes which have given terrorist groups a foothold.
In Iraq, non-inclusive policies have allowed Da’esh to flourish.
Therefore we need to help Iraq in rebuilding an inclusive, peaceful, multi-ethnic and multi-religious society, trustful of its state institutions.
Inclusiveness, national reconciliation and rule of law are essential.
On regional dynamics, the relations of Iraq with its neighbours are crucial.
We are strongly in favour of dialogue between all countries of the region, this is essential as we focus on the primary task of fighting and defeating Da’esh in an effective way.
Looking ahead, it is our collective moral responsibility to remain a strong partner of Iraq during this difficult moment.
Iraq needs all the help we can give at this critical moment for the country’s stability.
If we don’t do our utmost to help now, and ensure that Mosul is both liberated and then stabilised, we will have a much worse situation to deal with, which will have knock on effects for all the neighbours.
The Council has therefore been looking at what more the EU can do in Iraq.
I call on the European Parliament to continue to support all the strands of EU action to tackle in a comprehensive manner the multiple causes and consequences of the crisis.
Mr President, Honourable Members,
Thank you for your attention and I look forward to our discussion.
Closing remarks
This has been a very useful exchange and I thank Honourable Members for their interventions.
From this debate I conclude that we all share a common interest in using EU diplomatic power and EU instruments to their full potential in support of the Iraqi crisis.
We will continue to look at how best to use all the instruments available to us: in humanitarian relief, stabilisation development assistance, political dialogue and in specific support to human rights and democracy.
May I close by signalling once again my appreciation of Parliament’s role in keeping this important issue on the international agenda.