Prime Minister's address to the 81st session of the General Assembly

Baghdad – Al-Wasat Iraqi newspaper

Iraq's Prime Minister Ali Falih Al-Zaidi affirmed today, Friday, that Iraq seeks to exercise its influence as an effective economic power in the region and as a bridge for dialogue and cooperation among its peoples. He also indicated the commitment to ensuring the state is the decision-maker in peace and war, and stated that the Development Road project represents Iraq's comprehensive vision for integration, inclusion and regional stability.

Below is the full text of the speech:

In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate.

Mr. President of the United Nations General Assembly, esteemed His Excellency the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Your Majesties and Sovereigns, Excellencies and Honored Guests, ladies and gentlemen.

Peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon you.

With feelings of pride and honor I stand before this international assembly representing the Republic of Iraq, the land of early civilizations and the cradle of writing and law, and one of the founding states of the United Nations. I reaffirm my country's commitment to its Charter and principles, and to Iraq's vision for its future, its region, and the world at this critical stage.

Iraq has perhaps dealt with wars and their damages more than others, and we have lived through their conditions and what was imposed on us of embargo and terrorism.

Our people paid a heavy price in the lives of its sons and its resources and development opportunities.

Despite those hardships that made our country, for decades, a theater of wars and conflicts, today we speak with full confidence about our vision for the future.

Iraq aspires to exercise its influence and impact as an effective economic power in the region and as a bridge for dialogue and cooperation among its peoples.

Ladies and gentlemen;

Our vision at this stage is founded on our national will to restore the prestige of the law, strengthen state institutions, and consolidate citizens' confidence in them.

These are our governing priorities. We are determined that the state be the decision-maker in peace and war and that weapons and instruments of force remain in the hands of its constitutional institutions.

So that the law is the arbiter and the national interest is the compass.

Our executive measures in this field are moving in the right direction.

They represent the foundation for building a state of institutions, protecting sovereignty, consolidating stability, and preparing the environment necessary for development and investment.

With the end of the International Coalition's mission in Iraq, we are moving our relationship with our strategic partners to a new phase from military cooperation to economic and developmental cooperation that serves our mutual interests.

In doing so we add to the Iraqis' victory over terrorism a renewed determination and increased momentum to complete the building of our security and military capabilities to protect our land, our people and our sovereignty.

And in order to sustain integration with our international friends,

we call on everyone to secure borders, address vulnerabilities, and maintain constant vigilance to prevent the formation of the environments that feed extremism.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Within the framework of institutional reform, our government is waging a battle against corruption and protecting public funds. We are proceeding with substantive and sustainable measures to raise performance efficiency and improve services.

We aim to build a strong state and a diversified, modern economy that aligns with global technological and digital transformations.

We are working to employ all successful expertise and innovative economic, financial and business experiences to advance the economic and financial reform of my country.

And to provide a safe environment for national and foreign investment.

This vision is based on Iraq's major assets: resources and investment opportunities in energy, industry, agriculture, transport and technology.

As well as its exceptional geographic location that links the Iraqi economy to the world.

In this context our vision aims to move Iraq to a stage where it is an active productive partner in the region.

By gradually reducing the effects of a rentier economy and strengthening open-market policies.

By developing productive and export capacities and investing in infrastructure and services.

From these premises we have set a roadmap to support the private sector and provide the legal, tax and customs facilities and guarantees necessary for business growth and foreign trade.

And to build effective partnerships with the global market to accelerate sustainable development.

On the global energy front, Iraq's impact is directly apparent.

Our government adopts an ambitious program to increase crude oil production in line with the size of our proven reserves.

To develop gas fields and expand refining capacities and the production of derivatives and petrochemical industries.

Our ambition is for Iraq to be a global center for energy production and to use its capabilities to enhance regional and international security and stability in a sustainable way.

At the same time we view with concern the repercussions related to freedom of navigation and what they have caused in terms of the global rise in energy prices.

To contain risks and repercussions on our peoples we are working to diversify our export outlets and to develop energy lines and corridors linking Iraq with Turkey, Jordan and Syria to reach global markets, with the aim of contributing to energy security and diversifying supply routes.

Your Excellencies and Highnesses,

Economic diversification based on genuine partnerships is a central strategic goal of our economic policy.

Therefore our government has placed enhancing economic and industrial development across all sectors at the top of its priorities.

From here comes the Development Road project as Iraq's comprehensive vision for integration, inclusion and regional stability.

To be an important gateway and a strategic corridor for trade, investment, industry and energy.

Linking east to west, starting from the Grand Faw Port to Turkey and from there to Europe.

We want this project to be open to partnership with all our neighbors and friends because we believe economic interests create prosperity.

When countries of the region are linked by ports, railways, energy lines, trade and investments, they have a greater interest in protecting stability.

From this United Nations platform we tell the world: invest with Iraq.

It has the resources, the market, the location and the will to build a new economy.

Our government is working intensively to shape partnerships that achieve mutual interests, create jobs, transfer technology and knowledge, and develop Iraq's productive capacities.

Ladies and gentlemen,

State security and the sustainability of peace are a shared responsibility, based on the United Nations Charter. True stability is not built by wars but by shared interests that make cooperation more worthwhile than conflict.

Iraq's vision is based on contributing to moving the region from conflict to integration.

From rivalry to cooperation, and from resource depletion to investing them in development.

On this basis we extend our hands to all on the principles of respect for sovereignty, non-interference, good neighborliness, and deepening mutual interests, making dialogue the means to resolve differences.

Based on these principles, Iraq renews its supportive stance toward dialogue

and diplomacy to defuse crises,

and to support efforts to allow trade to pass through Iraqi territory with substantial facilitation to provide alternatives to complex commercial corridors.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Iraq sees its responsibility toward peoples, their security and stability,

as requiring efforts to end conflicts through negotiation for a secure future and to prevent wars from breaking out again.

At United Nations headquarters there is a copy of the stele of the Babylonian king Hammurabi which reads:

"Laws were made to prevent the strong from oppressing the weak."

In today's world we find the weak are wronged because the law of the strong prevails, not the rule of law.

For this reason the Palestinian issue remains present in any discussion about stability in the region.

There will be no space for security in the Middle East without a just solution to this issue and recognition of the Palestinian people's right to their land, to self-determination, and to establish their sovereign state.

We emphasize here the utmost importance of facilitating access for humanitarian aid and protecting civilians.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The security we seek does not stop at ending conflicts; it extends to confronting climate change, desertification and water scarcity.

These are challenges Iraq faces that affect its food security.

Therefore we affirm our adherence to our legitimate and fair water rights and call for joint management of water resources according to principles of cooperation and international law.

In addressing other risks, we continue to confront organized crime through cooperation with all friends to thwart its dangers, dismantle transnational drug trafficking, and we call for increased information sharing and international coordination to prevent this threat to societies.

Amid these challenges, the Iraqi person remains our goal and the purpose of our efforts.

Given the high proportion of youth in our society, we seek to make them a real focus of the economy of the future.

Through education, diversifying job opportunities, supporting entrepreneurship, and backing areas of the digital economy.

With our constitutional commitment to protect human rights and freedoms, enhance women's participation, care for children, and preserve the national, religious and cultural diversity of our country.

Ladies and gentlemen,

We invite you with confidence to further open up to Iraq; it is a true partner capable of contributing to the expansion of security, strengthening stability, and accelerating development in all fields.

From this podium we say:

Iraq has never been on the margins; it is the heart of history and the pulse of the present, and it deserves partnership toward the future.

In conclusion, on this occasion we renew our supportive stance toward the role of the United Nations.

We appreciate its efforts that have embodied joint action in support of Iraq through the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI).

We affirm our pursuit of productive cooperation with the Organization and wish it success in its efforts to mitigate the effects of wars and the consequences of conflict in the world.

Peace, mercy and blessings of God be upon you.