KRG PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY OF DEFENSE MEET IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 000073

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/07/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL IZ
SUBJECT: KRG PRESIDENT AND SECRETARY OF DEFENSE MEET IN
SPIRIT OF COOPERATION

Classified By: Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: In a meeting on December 21 Kurdistan
Regional Government (KRG) President Masoud Barzani expressed
gratitude to Secretary of Defense Gates for U.S. assistance
and said the Kurds look forward to continued cooperation.
Accompanied by the Ambassador, General Pace, and Ambassador
Satterfield, Gates assured Barzani of the U.S. commitment to
Iraq and the region. Barzani told the SecDef that Iraq needs
clearly defined positions both physically and politically,
and explained that moderate political forces are working to
form a front that will give the government the popular
backing to make tough decisions and uphold the rule of law.
Barzani assured the SecDef that the Kurds are committed to a
single unified Iraq. END SUMMARY.

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Gratitude and a Spirit of Cooperation
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2. (C) Barzani expressed his gratitude to the U.S for its
assistance in toppling the dictatorship. He said Kurds and
American have bled together, and the Kurds will continue
working very hard and in cooperation with the Ambassador and
General Casey to find a solution to the security problem. He
expressed pride that not one U.S. soldier had been injured in
the Kurdish Region. He said he speaks for all Kurds when he
says they would welcome a U.S. base in the Kurdish Region.


3. (C) Secretary Gates thanked Barzani and assured him of
President Bush's commitment to Iraq for as long as he is
President, as well as to a long term presence in the Persian
Gulf. He said the U.S. is not going to impose a government
on Iraq, but it is prepared to help Iraqis sort through their
problems and protect the rights of all.

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Barzani Calls for Clearly Defined Positions
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4. (C) Barzani predicted the situation will get worse if we
do not find real solutions. He told the Secretary that the
Kurds are not part of the problem but will be part of the
solution. He said the U.S. provided them a great opportunity
to build a new Iraq, but Iraqis need clearly defined
positions, both physically and politically. They cannot
build a democratic state based on chauvinistic views and
thoughts. He said moderate political leaders have been
working to create a political front that represents the
people and provides popular support to the government, but
some forces are undermining the government from within and
using government facilities and equipment to violate the law.



5. (C) Barzani said neither the Kurds nor the U.S. can help
the Shia and Sunnis if they do not want help. He outlined
two alternatives to a moderate front. The first option is
holding new elections, but this requires forming a new
government with a different balance - the key difference
would be allowing the majority to form the government. The
second option is to impose a solution that stops the killing.
No one wants this, but any alternative improves on the
status quo. He said they need a government that can uphold
the rule of law - they cannot participate in a state where
20-70 bodies are found everyday in the streets.

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Sunni, Shia Mindsets a Problem
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6. (C) Barzani described two long-standing conflicts in Iraq:
one between Sunni and Shia, and one between Kurds and Arabs.
He told the SecDef that the Kurds have stopped teaching the
tradition of revenge and adopted a mindset of forgiveness and
reconciliation. Unfortunately, he said, the Arabs still
follow the revenge tradition. He expressed his conviction to
put all that behind them and to focus on the future. He
outlined two wars underway in Iraq - the war against
terrorism and the sectarian war. He said the Kurds also
suffer and hurt but have refused to be dragged in to a civil
war, despite 2,000 Kurds killed and 3,000 families expelled
from Mosul.


7. (C) Another problem, he said, is the mindset of "our
brothers the Sunni Arabs." They ruled illegitimately for 80
years, and they still think they should rule. They do not
believe in the philosophy of partnership - their opposition
to federalism is grounded in this view. He said he has
worked hard to create a partnership between them because

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whether they or we like it or not Iraq is made of three parts
(Sunni, Shia, and Kurd).

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Unity the Best Way
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8. (C) Secretary Gates thanked Barzani and expressed his
appreciation for the constructive role the Kurds have played
in Iraq. Then he told Barzani that when he was in Iraq in
September the Kurds expressed their desire for independence,
but they thought under current conditions it would last only
a few months before war broke out. Therefore, they said, the
framework of a single Iraq is the best way to protect their
people for now.


9. (C) Barzani replied that the independence movement in the
Kurdish Region has gained traction, but his government
continues to advise them that Iraqi unity is the best way.
He explained that they have been mistreated throughout their
history, and like every other people they want their own
nation. He said the Ambassador has visited the Kurdish
Region and stood where the Barzani family started fighting
for freedom in 1892, but, he explained, they cannot go on
fighting forever and they cannot live in an environment of
partial freedom.
KHALILZAD