August 11, 2014 was not an ordinary date for Haider Abadi, but an important historical station in his life and in the history of contemporary Iraq, as in this date he was commissioned by President Fuad Masum, the President of the Republic of Iraq to form the Iraqi government. He inherited a heavy legacy of military breakdowns, economic collapses, social rifts, sectarian strife, and very bad relations with the neighboring countries of Iraq, especially Saudi Arabia. Under these internal and external circumstances, Haider al-Abadi ruled Iraq. Therefore his constitutional task was not easy or paved path with roses, but on the contrary, it was very difficult but ultimately he succeeded to manage it…
On the security side, Haidar al-Abadi, the commander-in-chief of the Iraqi armed forces, was able to confront the “security cancer” represented by the organization ISIS and defeating it from various Iraqi provinces controlled by it, and he was just around the corner of liberating the Iraqi soil from the terrorist organization ISIS. On the economic side, Haider al-Abadi raised the slogan of combating corruption in all the joints of the Iraqi state. In his reign, there is a noticeable improvement in the performance of the Iraqi ministries, such as the Ministry of Industry, Social Affairs, Electricity and Oil. At the social level, according to a poll conducted by the Washington Institute in June this year in Anbar province, Salah al-Din and Mosul that Haider Abadi has the confidence of Iraqi citizens in those provinces and that the people of those provinces put their optimism and confidence on him .According to the poll, Abadi will determine the fate of Iraq in the post-Saddam era if he succeeds in investing this wave of confidence in his leadership. More than 70% of the Sunnis and 60% of Shiites support Abadi. In addition, 50% of the Sunnis in general and 53% of those who were under the control of Da’ash support a second term for Abadi, compared to 35% among Shiites. This confidence in Abadi led two-thirds of the population of Mosul in favor of any governor appointed by Abadi , even he was from the Shiite community , to the current governor of Mosul. This great confidence in Abbadi and his leadership also led the vast majority of the population of Mosul to reject any sort of very decentralized federal settlement for the future administration of their city. They prefer to remain part of the federal Iraqi state and reject any call for any other proposed settlement along the lines of the proposal of the semi-autonomous region. In the same context, more than 80% of the Sunnis, especially those who have experienced life under the control of “Da’ash”, want the Iraqi army and police to be the main security forces in their areas, not local tribal forces. The positive message that Abadi succeeded in conveying to the inhabitants of the liberated areas is that the state, while in its weakest form and most volatile stage, is still the only party capable of protecting its citizens. On the side of the emphasis on the unity of Iraqi soil, Haider Abadi confirmed his total rejection of the results of the referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan, and not only that, but took practical measures to avoid it.
So it was no surprise that the Spanish newspaper El Pais, widely known for Iraqi affairs, described Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi as a “man of the stage” and became a “national leader”, citing the reason that he achieved what seemed impossible and closed the doors of sectarianism. The newspaper said in a report, “Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, a man of the stage, and he has widespread support for the fight against ISIS.” The newspaper adds that “Abadi achieved what seemed impossible, and re-built the armed forces that expelled ISIS from the areas seized by three years ago,” noting that “Iraqi forces in the era of Abadi restored land seized by Peshmerga Kurdistan region of Iraq as a result of chaos.” The newspaper said that “Abadi became a national leader, where he generated an extraordinary consensus,” explaining that “the way he worked in the restoration of Mosul and Kirkuk, and his policy conveyed to the Iraqis the idea that he works for everyone.” The newspaper pointed out that “Abadi stressed the need for the unity of all communities, and limited the excesses of armed groups.”
As for the importance of the Arab dimension in the foreign policy of Haidar Abadi’s government, it is very clear. As a man of state in Iraq, Abadi is deeply aware that the Arab countries and the Arab identity form the strategic depth that is very difficult to dispense with here he noted in his speech in Arab summit held in Amman “that Iraq is one of the Arab countries that contributed to the establishment of the League of Arab States. It is worth to be noted that Iraq was one of the Arab countries that attended the Arab Conference held in Alexandria in 1944, which was known historically Protocol Alexandria in 1944, which paved the way for the establishment of the League of Arab States on 22 March 1945. The importance of the Arab dimension in Iraqi politics is also evident when Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called on all Arab countries to participate in the reconstruction and stability efforts in the provinces after purging Iraq from ISIS. In this context, Haidar al-Abadi pursued the policy of openness and rapprochement with the Arab countries. He visited Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt, and these visits are only practical evidence that Iraq is not deviating from its Arab depth. There is no doubt that this Arab-Iraqi rapprochement will positively affect all Economic, military and security diplomacy levels between the two sides and opens a new page for inter-Arab cooperation. The Turkish-Iraqi relations have also been closer lately despite the tension that has soured relations between the two countries against the backdrop of the “Baasika camp.” Haidar al-Abadi is well aware that relations between countries do not go in a straight line. On the international level, Haidar al-Abadi has enjoyed international support since he came to govern Iraq. He is supported by the United States of America, both in the era of the former US administration and the administration of the current US president Donald Trump , and supported by the European Union, particularly Germany and France. The question arises in this context how did Haider Abadi gain his popularity in Iraq and respect of the Arab, regional and international countries until he became the man of state expected in Iraq?
Any follower of the Iraqi affairs provided that he is objectively observant of the fact that Haider Abadi is doing his best to learn from his presence in power to become a statesman, or more accurately, to gain the features of a responsible statesman and to feel that he is responsible for the state and Iraqi society, which does not seek to exploit the governance for personal reasons and rapid enrichment or facilitate matters for members of his family and relatives in order to exert political influence and achieve rapid enrichment, as others have done, but before this and that, he has completely exceeded the prejudices and infidelity and sectarian strife, to be prime minister of the Iraqi government with a general national concept to represent all the Iraqis , the matter which is acknowledged even by his political rivals of the parties to the political process in Iraq, as well as Arab and international parties also, as we did not hear from an individual or a party to accuse him of sectarianism or sectarian bias against this or that. In addition, the man did not listen to the voices that tried to turn him into a fake and temporary copy of his predecessor. He did not pay attention to those songs that were ready to give him the title “choice of the age” or the leadership of the sect in case he wanted to. He also did not care much about the voices that accused him and continued to accuse him of weakness, concession and surrender to others. Since he came to rule Iraq, Haider al-Abadi devoted most of his time to ending the complex crises that Iraq has faced. Because Abadi believes in a civil state that believes in democratic political pluralism based on the peaceful rotation of Iraq’s rule and resorting to the ballot boxes so that the Iraqi people can choose who governs it and the equality of all citizens regardless of ethnic and sectarian differences, he has visited Voter Registration Center on November 18, , Stressing that the parliamentary elections will be held in a constitutional date, contrary to what is spoken by a number of politicians, so that the Council of Ministers set its final date and during the visit to the center , Haider Abadi received his electoral card and his participation in the elections pointing out that “country is going on the right path ” and noted that after the completion of the fight against ISIS . He called on citizens to go the centers to receive their electoral cards and participate in the elections, noting that “the country is on the right track.” He noted that “after the completion of the fight against ISIS, there is a campaign to fight corruption, which requires concerted efforts of everyone to eliminate it, as we have eliminated ISIS ” The specifications of the man of the state applied to Haider Abadi make him a man of the next stage in order to advance Iraq to regain its pivotal role in the Arab, Middle Eastern and international environment.
Iraqi Studies Unit
Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies