STRUAN STEVENSON, MEP The European Parliament, ASP 12G306, Rue Wiertz, B - 1047 Brussels (Belgium) Email: struan.stevenson@europarl.europa.eu Tel: +32-2 28 45710 Fax: +32-2 28 49710

DELEGATION FOR RELATIONS WITH IRAQ

PRESIDENT

Press Release

13 July 2011

President of Iraqi Parliament in Brussels

The Honourable Osama al-Nujaifi, President of the Iraqi Parliament was welcomed

on Tuesday, 12 July in Brussels by the European Parliament's Foreign Affairs

Committee Chairman and the President of the Delegation for Relations with Iraq.

Mr al-Nujaifi, who was heading a delegation of ten Iraqi MPs on the visit to the EU,

attended a joint meeting of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Delegation for

Relations with Iraq. At the meeting, he explained about the current economic,

political and security situation in Iraq, requesting assistance from the European

Parliament and the EU to solve these issues.

During the meeting both Mr Nujaifi and MEPs stressed the need to end human

rights violations in Iraq. Struan Stevenson emphasised his concerns over the failure

to implement the Erbil Agreement which was the key instrument agreed by all of

the political factions to create a national unity government. He also expressed

concern at the failure to create a National Council for Strategic Policies and to

appoint Ministers of Defence, Interior and Security, stating that the concentration of

power over the intelligence services, security apparatus and Iraqi military in the

office of the Prime Minister was dangerously undemocratic.

Both sides agreed actively to support the expansion of the EU’s role in the

reconstruction of Iraq, on the clear understanding that the Erbil agreement must be

implemented and the human rights situation, together with respect for the rights of

ethnic and religious minorities and foreign refugees in Iraq, improved.

Some members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, by referring to several resolutions

in the European Parliament on Camp Ashraf, expressed their grave concern over

the situation there and the massacre on 8 April which resulted in the death of 36

unarmed civilians and over 340 wounded. They demanded an independent,

international enquiry into the massacre.

Mr Al-Nujaifi, the President of the Iraqi parliament said: “We condemn the use of

violence against these political refugees at Camp Ashraf and the loss of many lives there. An

independent committee has to investigate the attack. We support the European solution of

resettling the residents in third countries and if they can be transferred to Europe, it will be

a logical solution. A plan proposed by the Americans to displace them inside Iraq has been

rejected by all parties and we regard it unacceptable and we back the solution of third

countries. We hope that the human rights of these political refugees would be respected and

we regret what happened to them. “

Struan Stevenson also unveiled his initiative to hold a major conference on

INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN IRAQ over two days on 5-6 December in

Brussels, with the president of Iraq, the president of the European Commission, the

president of the European Parliament and the Prime Minister of Poland attending.

This conference will discuss energy, agriculture and trade, involving respective

commissioners and ministers from Iraq. Mr Stevenson said that the EU will invite

business and industry leaders from across Europe to attend and that this will

highlight great opportunities to create jobs and prosperity in Iraq and to kick-start

the Iraqi economy. This was widely supported by the Iraqi delegation.

Struan Stevenson MEP

President, Delegation for Relations with Iraq

European Parliament

Brussels