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For the past several months Iraq has been is the eye of the storm that has hit the Middle East. The war against the "Islamic state" passes through Iraq, while the recent attack in Paris reminded us that the problem of terrorism is not a "privilege" of just some countries of the Middle East and Africa. The Ambassador of Iraq in Greece, H.E. Mr. Burhan Jaf, talked to "ET" about the fight against the "Islamic State" and the need for international cooperation against terrorism.

1. At what point is at this moment the battle against the "Islamic State" in Iraq?
The initiative is now in the hands of the army and Peshmerga forces. They choose carefully where to attack and I think that the myth around "ISIS" has now collapsed. The Peshmerga were the first to reverse the image of an invincible "IS" army, which they proved we can win over. A lot has been said about ISIS but the reality is that now many parts of the Western region and most of Kurdistan region that was originally occupied by the jihadists has been liberated by the Peshmerga and Iraqi forces.


2. It is argued that, at the moment, Iraq is a trisected country. Do you believe that this will soon be a de facto situation?
Yes, it is true that a few months ago we had some political issues and at the same time we faced the attack of the "Islamic State", which had occupied almost one third of Iraq. But we now have a new government and the situation has changed. As you know, Iraq is still a federal state, we have a constitution and a national army. Yes, there are concerns, I agree, but the goal of the present government is to keep the country united. There were some issues with the government in Erbil in the recent past but an agreement was successfully reached with Baghdad a month ago not only about the budget but also about the management of oil. In addition to that, the government in Baghdad is in a dialogue with the local political forces in western provinces. In other words, the process of national reconciliation is ongoing. The current government of PM Abadi is determined to maintain the federation system while delegating more powers to the provinces in terms of economy and management. What concerns our government now the most though is to combat terrorism.

3. At the moment there is war in the Kurdish regions of Syria and Iraq. Also Turkish Kurdistan is in turmoil. Do you see potential for the formation of a Kurdish state in the near future?
So far there is no such request, formal request so to say. The Kurds are part of the federal state and contribute their share to the national economy. They are part of the coalition of the current government. Certainly they do not hide their ambition for independence. If this happens, "if" I repeat, I wish it develops in a peaceful manner, and that it results in a peaceful agreement. But I cannot see this happening in the very near future, as it is not currently on the table.

4. As the recent attack in France showed, the West is targeted by the jihadists. Where do you think this situation will lead?
As the attack in Paris showed, which of course we condemn in the strongest way possible, terrorism is not a matter that only concerns our region but it is an international issue. It has reached Europe and we need to work together on a global level. I would not be surprised if there were more attacks in other European capitals or elsewhere in the world. Solidarity is the key here. For example, at least 60 countries are supporting Iraq through military and humanitarian aid to address the problem of "IS" terrorism. Terrorism does not concern just one country and of course it is not a matter of particular religion. No religion justifies killing people. The world needs to confront terrorism because if we fail we might come up against a religious war.

5. Criticizing Western foreign policy it is argued that ISIS -and other extreme Islamic movements- is a Frankenstein created by the West itself with its policies, interventions in the Middle East and funding of Islamic extremists to overthrow certain leaders, like Assad and Gaddafi. What is your opinion on that?
I do not think it is time to talk about dragons and demons! We have a problem, we need to face it, and as I said before, that cannot be done effectively without an international cooperation. Terrorism is now a reality. ISIS started out by being funded by some individuals and now it controls lands and oil fields. We need to "dry up" their funding sources.
Also let us not forget that Syria lies at the very core of this problem. It is where all these fanatics start from and in my opinion we should tackle the problem of Syria on a political level. The Syrian problem cannot be solved by military means only. If Syria is stable then the whole Middle East will start stabilizing. We must therefore be realistic and deal with the issue politically, encouraging an agreement between Syrian government and its opposition.

6. Yes, but don't you think we need at some point to talk honestly and openly about how these extremist movements were created?
In Middle Eastern countries there are undemocratic regimes and as a result of this came the so-called "Arab Spring", that in fact was "no spring" at all. What came about was actually worse. People expected that the situation would improve, but this did not happen and the result was that they closed their eyes to extreme groups.
In Iraq we overthrew Saddam Hussein and soon we established a solid constitution that kept the country united and still holds it together. What happened later is another matter. The fact that the liberators became occupying powers was a big mistake. When you become an occupying power in a country then you are held responsible for anything that occurs even if you have not caused it directly.

7. In Europe there is much debate going on about immigration. The wars in the Middle East are moving waves of refugees to Europe and host countries, such as Greece, face a serious problem. Some countries discuss restrictions on immigration, revisions of Schengen, while sometimes migrants –mainly Muslims- seem to be thought of as interconnected with terrorism. How do you comment on that?
Regarding the second part of your question I would like to say that we should be very careful when talking about religion and about people that commit crimes in the name of religion. It is impossible that more than one and a half billion Muslims in the world are all terrorists and on top of that, it is the Muslim citizens that are the first and the largest victims of jihadists.
Coming to the first part of your question about immigration, I would like to mention that since 2010 -in cooperation with the Greek authorities- more than 6,000 Iraqis have returned home from Greece. Immigration is an international phenomenon. Greeks, for example, are known for immigrating and building up a successful life in many parts of the world. Yet, apart from economic immigration, there are war refugees and in that sense, we have to take into account the human side of immigration. We cannot stop immigration, it is in the human nature, and thus we need to address it properly.
Having said that, I understand that Greece is a small country and it is indeed a host country and should protect itself. On the other hand, there are international obligations, agreements on human rights and treaties that Greece has ratified. What about that? Are they going to be reviewed and if so, in what sense? I believe that this is a topic that causes tensions and conflicts. At one point there was a discussion about the "clash of civilizations". I personally consider such arguments to be "rubbish". As for the problem of immigration, that is a different case depending on the country. But building walls certainly does not help. It rather creates even more problems. Take Greece for example- would it put up walls around the Aegean? This is unrealistic. I am not to say what Greece should do or not but I surely agree on the fact that every country has the right to prevent people from entering its territory illegally. And of course, let us not forget that the mafia that is helping illegal immigration should be effectively addressed as well.