UNDER SECRETARIES BURNS AND FLOURNOY MEET WITH DPM

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAGHDAD 001321 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/14/2029 TAGS: PREL PGOV MARR IZ SUBJECT: UNDER SECRETARIES BURNS AND FLOURNOY MEET WITH DPM ISSAWI Classified By: Deputy Chief of Mission Patricial A. Butenis for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary: In a May 13 meeting with Under Secretary of State Bill Burns and Under Secretary of Defense Michele Flournoy, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Rafi al-Issawi blamed the politicization of government ministries and corruption for the poor state of essential services in Iraq. He said health care was his highest priority, as the sector had suffered from 25-30 years of neglect, and expressed hope that Iraq would move toward a "liberal-secular" model of government in the next election. Issawi said Kurd-Arab tensions would likely continue as Iraq moves toward Kurdish and national elections, and criticized the UN's reports on Disputed Internal Boundaries (DIBs) as ill-timed, and for including non-disputed areas in the reports. End Summary. Services and Capacity-Building -------------- ¶2. (C) Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Bill Burns and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy, accompanied by Charge d'Affaires Patricia Butenis, met May 13 with Deputy Prime Minister Rafi al-Issawi. Flournoy began by expressing support for a strong and unified Iraq. She asked Issawi about the state of basic services and what the U.S. could do to help. ¶3. (C) Issawi replied that politics, security, and services are mixed together. Regarding services, the challenge in 2009 is capacity building. This has been difficult as the GOI's budget has been affected by the collapse of the price of oil. There is also a problem of control and lack of technical competence. As Iraq moves from a highly centralized state to a more federal model, leaders are finding a lack of expertise at the provincial level. ¶3. (C) Issawi noted that he had met with a group of provincial governors and that they are trying to identify technical experts to help improve services. He said he has had good collaboration from the Embassy and USAID to build institutional capacity, but that government institutions are too politicized. Service delivery, he said, cannot be based on religious affiliation. Institutions need to be developed on a national basis, rather than along ethnic or sectarian lines. Improvements of institutional capacity to streamline provision of services face the obstacle of politicians who maintain power through patronage networks that currently determine resource allocation, often along sectarian or party lines. ¶4. (C) In response to a question from U/S Burns, Issawi said health care is his highest priority. He noted that for three years, the Ministry of Health had been "infiltrated" by militias and that the system of health care had been damaged over 25-30 years of neglect. Therefore, it will take time to repair. Issawi said that his second priority is agriculture, and that his third priority is electricity. However, Issawi emphasized that it was difficult to prioritize essential services as they were all important. Corruption -------------- ¶5. (C) Issawi stressed that corruption is one of Iraq's biggest challenges and is adversely affecting services such as water supply, education, health care, and agriculture. In response to a question from U/S Burns regarding how anti-corruption efforts can be strengthened, Issawi said that anti-corruption institutions have not been free to act because of political interference. He commended Parliament's actions during the past few days to call ministers for questioning, but noted that some party blocs are working Qquestioning, but noted that some party blocs are working behind the scenes to prevent affiliated ministers from attending Parliament. ¶6. (C) The DPM noted that the Oil Ministry is especially badly administered, and that this is widely recognized. Why then, he asked rhetorically, has the minister not been replaced? This situation, he said, in which ministerial positions are allocated and protected based on sectarian, ethnic or party affiliation rather than competence, will have to change after the next election. Partisanship and Secular Politics -------------- ¶7. (C) Issawi stressed that Iraq's political leaders are now more focused on building parties than institutions, and noted that "most groups" in government are religious parties. He expressed hope that this would change after the next election BAGHDAD 00001321 002 OF 002 and that Iraq can move toward a "liberal-secular" model that is preferred by "most Iraqis." In that vein, Issawi noted that former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi provided a good secular model for leadership, and that Allawi had selected better and more experienced people than the current government. ¶8. (C) DPM Issawi said it was important that liberal-secular parties join together to avoid being marginalized in elections. In the provincial elections, he noted that some liberal parties ran separately and split votes, winning no seats as a result. If they had joined together they would have done much better. Reconciliation and SOI Integration -------------- ¶9. (C) Concerning reconciliation efforts, Issawi said that there has been more rhetoric than progress. Only a small number of Sons of Iraq (SOI),noted Issawi, have genuinely been integrated in the security services. He said there needs to be a permanent solution rather than dealing with the SOI through temporary contracts. Issawi also said that there is still mistrust of the SOI initiative, and that many view the SOI as a creation of the U.S. military. He said this situation was symptomatic of promises that have not been implemented. Issawi added that for "political reasons," the Ministry of Migration has overstated the number of internally displaced people in Iraq. U.S. Military Transition -------------- ¶10. (C) U/S Flournoy asked Issawi for his views regarding the upcoming transition of U.S. forces out of cities, and whether Iraqi security forces were prepared. Issawi said that both the Ministries of Defense and Interior were well positioned to take over and were performing well. However, while both ministers are well regarded, Issawi acknowledged that there has been an increase in bombings. Arab-Kurd Tensions -------------- ¶11. (C) Concerning Kurd-Arab tensions, and the release of the UN's report on Disputed Internal Boundaries, Issawi agreed that there has been an increase in tension and that this will likely continue as Iraq gets closer to Kurdish and national elections. He said the UN reports were not well received, and that the timing of the reports' release was bad. Issawi said he had formed a study group consisting of MPs from Mosul, Kirkuk and Diyala. However, he criticized the UN for including in its reports "some non-disputed areas." All groups, he concluded, are dissatisfied by the reports. ¶12. (U) U/S Burns and USD/P Flournoy have cleared on this message. HILL