It was ironic for Kuwait, the country which Saddam Hussain's army wantonly savaged, to host the most relevant meeting on Iraq to show that Iraq continues to occupy a great interest in Kuwait strategic thinking.
It was the "third expanded ministerial conference of the neighbouring countries of Iraq", and was attended by 29 countries and international and regional organisations. Present were the major world powers and the movers and shakers in Iraq.
Also in attendance were members of the axis of moderation led by the US and axis of radicalism led by Iran and Syria.
The high calibre and the number of the countries in attendance from the US and its partners in the UN Security Council and Group of Eight, European Union, the UN, the Arab League and Organisation of Islamic Countries testify to the saliency of the Iraqi file to Kuwait and the international community.
All were present in the same hall to discuss Iraq, Iran and other regional issues affected by the proxy war and the "nefarious Iranian role in Iraq" as stated by the US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice.
In the meeting, the US and Iraq pleaded to give a nod of approval to the government of Nouri Al Maliki, write off Iraq's debts owed mainly to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, in addition to opening up the GCC and other Arab diplomatic missions in Baghdad which were shut down after orchestrated attacks against Arab missions which destroyed the Jordanian Embassy and killed the Egyptian Ambassador and kidnapped and injured a Gulf diplomat in 2005 to join 45 other present missions there.
The Iraqi Prime Minister pleaded to write off over $50 billion and freeze the financial compensation due to damages and losses by Saddam Hussain's war and occupation of Kuwait.
Such demands were echoed by Rice, Bahrain and Kuwait, in addition to the US Secretary of State's plea for debt relief and re-opening GCC and Arab embassies and helping to convince the Sunni Arabs to participate in political reconciliation.
She angrily and without the niceties of diplomatic language stated "the neighbours keep making a case that the security situation needs to get better. It has.
They keep making the case that political reconciliation needs to be making strides forward. It has... I think it's fair to say the neighbours could do more to live up to their obligations ... At some point the Arab states need to take yes for an answer in terms of Iraq's commitment to its Arab identity".
The Arab neighbours of Iraq, particularly Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, are hesitant to get involved in the affairs of Iraq, or of supporting the Al Maliki government, so long as it isn't more representative. It supports some political blocs, while Sunni and Shiite blocs boycott it, and there are accusations of sectarianism from Iraqi groups and Arab countries.
Failed policy
We do not want to be party to or the cover of the failed US policy there, which bears the repercussions of a bitter war that began five years ago or to plunge into the dangerous swamp at this late date.
And there is no use talking about opening embassies and sending ambassadors in the absence of a clear political reconciliation drive towards preparation for anchoring the national interest and reconstruction. There's no sense in drawing up ambitious roadmaps for prosperity and stability and security while the fires are still raging in Iraq.
Furthermore, the reasons for not opening up those embassies are political and logistical at the same time. There is no consensus among the GCC states to legitimise Al Maliki's government.
In addition, the Arab countries do not want to be a cover to pull US chestnuts from the fire, for a quagmire it insisted on undertaking without heeding the warnings or consulting its regional allies.
Opening up Arab embassies, while it is long overdue, nevertheless won't save Iraq or solve its lingering problems.
The US National Intelligence Estimate admits Iraq problems are internal ones The Saudi Foreign Minister, bluntly stated the lack of security is the reason for not opening the Saudi Embassy in Baghdad, and Al Maliki admitted Iraq's problems with the Arab world are due to the lack of trust.
Then how could the Arab ambassadors residing in the green fortified zone ameliorate the Iraqi debacle? Why write off Iraq's debts? While Iraq has the second largest oil reserves in the world, made billions of dollars in the last few years, how can we write off Iraq's debt while it is investing billions of dollars in US treasury bonds?
Finally, Suzanne Maloney, a former US State Department policy adviser, challenges the rosy assessment the Bush administration has been pushing.
As the result of the American war on Iraq, she states, "Instead of generating a liberal, secular democracy whose reverberations would drive out Iran's clerical oligarchs, the disastrous Bush policies fostered a sectarian Iraq that has helped empower Iranian hardliners.
"Rather than serving as an anchor for a new era of stability and American preeminence in the Arabian Gulf, the new Iraq represents a strategic black hole, bleeding Washington of military resources and political influence while extending Iran's primacy among its neighbours."
Dr Abdullah Alshayji is a Professor of Political Science and Head of the American Studies Unit at Kuwait University.
