UN chief visits Iraq for the first time in six years
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Alaina
- . March 1, 2023
- . Update: March 1, 2023 2:42 pm
Antonio Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), visited Iraq on Tuesday for the first time in six years to demonstrate “solidarity with the people of Iraq.”
On Tuesday, he arrived in Baghdad, the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world. He would meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani as well as representatives of women’s and youth rights groups.
On Thursday, the UN chief would visit a camp for displaced people in the north of Iraq. Later on, he would go to Erbil, the capital and most populated city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. He will reportedly meet with representatives of the regional government of Iraqi Kurdistan.
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The UN chief said that the visit demonstrates “that the United Nations is totally committed to supporting the consolidation of the institutions in Iraq.” He further said that Iraqis would be able to overcome the problems and challenges they face.
Earlier, he visited Iraq in 2017. He urged the international community to do more to help the people in Iraq. He asked the international community to do something for the displaced people in the country. He also talked to the regional government of Kurdistan as well as non-governmental organisations.
Meanwhile, Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid has said that his country now is at peace, according to The Associated Press. In an interview with The Associated Press, he has said that Iraq is ready to focus on improving everyday life for the Iraqi people.
Earlier this month, the special envoy for Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, urged the new Iraqi government to keep fighting corruption in the country. She urged the new government to ensure the protection of human rights and resolve issues with the Kurdistan Regional Government. She urged the government to solve Erbil-Baghdad’s issues.
