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CIAO DATE: 5/5/2007
Iraqi Reconciliation: Prospects for Peace at Home and Progress with Neighbors
David Satterfield
March 2007
Abstract
On March 27, 2007, Ambassador David Satterfield addressed The Washington Institute's Special Policy Forum. Ambassador Satterfield's public service career has included tours as ambassador to Lebanon as well as key Middle East affairs positions with both the State Department and the National Security Council. Formerly deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, he now coordinates Iraq policy at the State Department, serving as a senior advisor to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. The following is a rapporteur's summary of his remarks.
The United States cannot achieve stability in Iraq through military action alone. Parallel to the recent troop surge, three additional tracks must be facilitated by Washington, Iraq's neighbors, and the international community: political reconciliation, economic development, and diplomatic engagement. Each of these steps is mentioned in President Bush's "New Way Forward" for Iraq.
The United States cannot pursue the first track on its own; the Iraqis must pursue their own vigorous and comprehensive process of political reconciliation. The national hydrocarbon framework law approved by the Iraqi Council of Ministers represents a significant step toward this end, repudiating the notion that sectarian differences cannot be reconciled. This law seeks to develop the country's hydrocarbon sector by opening it up to greater outside investment, improved productivity measures, and greater exploitation of natural resources. The bill required significant compromises between Kurds and non-Kurds, Sunnis and Shiites, and individual Shiite factions.