IRAK DIE WIEGE DER ZIVILISATION

LE MONDE IRAQ
Working together against Jihadism
Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz visited Iraq at the beginning of February.
Together with Elmar Brok, Chair of the Committee on Foreign Affairs at the
European Parliament, he set a sign of solidarity with this trip.
Text: Petra Stix
Isabel Schmiedbauer
An expert view on the huge economic importance of Iraq in Austrian
business, difficulties in the market there at the present time, and
opportunities for the future.
Left: Foreign Minister
Sebastian Kurz and Iraq’s
Foreign Minister Ibrahim
al-Jaafari.
Right: Kurz in conversation
with his Kurdish counterpart,
Falah Mustafa Bakir, and
Iraq‘s Ambassador Dr.
Surood R. Najib.
Recent talks in Baghdad and Erbil with Iraq’s
President, Fuad Masum, Iraq’s Foreign Minister,
Ibrahim al-Jaafari, the Prime Minister of
the Autonomous Region of Kurdistan-Iraq, Nechirvan
Idris Barzani, and the Kurdistan Minister for
Foreign Relations, Falah Mustafa Bakir, focused on
joint efforts to fight jihadism and the Islamic State
campaign of terror.
Austria promised financial aid (a sum of 1.25 million
Euro) for refugees in northern Iraq. “Our first
aim is to strengthen mutual cooperation. This also
relates to dealing with foreign jihadists who pose a
threat to Europe upon their return. On the one hand,
they should be prevented from leaving, on the other,
they should be observed while they are in Iraq,” Kurz
announced in a joint press conference with Iraq’s
Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari.
Austria strengthens cooperation with Kurdistan
During his stay in Erbil, after a meeting with Falah
Mustafa Bakir, the Minister for Foreign Relations
of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Foreign Minister
Sebastian Kurz announced that an Honorary
Consulate was to be opened in Kurdistan. This could
be opened by the end of the year.
Austrian businesspeople were also to be given the
opportunity to invest in the region as part of a specially-dedicated
economic forum. Both AUA and
OMV already have a strong presence in Erbil.
Austrian Embassy desired
Al-Jaafari stated that while cooperation with Austria
was still in its initial phase: “This visit will give
new impetus to the development.” Al-Jaafari also expressed
a wish for Austria to reopen its diplomatic
mission in Baghdad.
Kurz told Iraq’s President Fuad Masum that it was
possible that the EU would open a police mission in
Iraq. Masum said he was interested in this concept,
and that an official request would be sent to the EU
shortly. This would make it possible for EU Member
States to train Iraqi security forces in the future. This
should make “a further contribution to greater security
in Iraq,” Kurz said.
The situation in Iraq
Thousands of people have already been forced to
flee the terror, and are now living in tents in refugee
camps. These refugee camps have no clean water or
functioning sanitary facilities. The meeting also touched
upon the position of religious and ethnic minorities
in Iraq, particularly Christians and Yazidis.
PHOTOS: DRAGAN TATIC
PHOTO: WKO
The Iraqi economy grew by an average of 6.9
percent per annum from 2008 to 2012, and
enjoyed an increase of 4.2 percent in 2013. By
2014, how ever, the Iraqi economy was being hit hard
by a combination of factors, including the expansion
of the Islamic State (IS) within the country, the falling
oil price and continuing tensions in the security
situation, which slowed economic growth significantly.
Estimates by a range of institutions including
the World Bank and the International Monetary
Fund now suggest that Iraqi economic growth in
2014 was between 0.5 percent and 1.8 percent. This
figure is expected to rise to 1.5 percent in 2015.
The falling oil price has meant that oil revenues
have been lower, despite higher oil exports. These lower
revenues, coupled with increased expenditures
driven by the delicate security situation and the humanitarian
catastrophe in the country, have of course
had a negative impact on Iraq’s financial position. A
budget of USD 103 billion was adopted in 2015 – approximately
30 percent down on the previous year.
From an Austrian viewpoint, Iraq is the sixth largest
Arab export market. Because much Austrian business
in Iraq is project-based, export statistics tend to
vary widely from year to year. 2011, for example, was
a record year, with exports reaching almost EUR 193
million, but this figure differed vastly from 2009,
when exports were worth less than EUR 80 million.
Exports to Iraq from January to September 2014
totalled EUR 55 million, down by around 57 percent
on the comparison period of the preceding year. The
types of goods which feature regularly amongst the
top export products include transformers, pharmaceutical
products, cheese, machinery such as mechanical
diggers, cranes, cars and switches. Although
the security situation does complicate direct market
cultivation on location, the Iraqi market offers opportunities
for Austrian companies operating in
fields such as infrastructure, energy, agriculture (irrigation),
foodstuffs and equipment used in the health
“From an Austrian viewpoint, Iraq is the sixth largest
Arab export market.”
sector. Due to planned higher expenditure in the
mili tary sector and a lower budget, it is not yet clear
which sectors the government will be prioritising for
investment this year, but it is worth keeping an eye
on the Iraqi market. Although the current security
situation makes it difficult to take advantage of the
high rates of growth seen in recent years, Iraq is still
a country with large oil and gas revenues and enormous
demand for reconstruction.
It is also important that companies are aware of
the fact that Iraq now consists de facto of two different
markets which need to be treated differently: the
Autonomous Region of Kurdistan in the north of the
country on the one hand, and the country’s central
and southern provinces on the other. There are often
differences affecting import procedures, the jurisdiction
of official authorities, policies on attracting new
investors to the region, and of course language. A
Federal Ministry of European and International Affairs
travel warning is already in place for Iraq.
The security situation in the Autonomous Region
of Kurdistan is noticeably better than in most other
provinces of Iraq, and Austrian Airlines continues to
offer direct flights from Vienna to the regional capital,
Erbil. Although it is possible to travel to Erbil,
you should always look into the prevailing security
situation before travelling outside conurbations, and
observe certain basic rules during your stay. When
arriving in Erbil, European travellers receive an entry
visa which is (exclusively) valid for the Region of
Kurdistan.
The Austrian Chamber of Commerce’s Foreign
Trade Centre in Amman, Jordan, is responsible not
only for Iraq, but also for Lebanon, Syria and Jordan
itself. We research market information and will always
be happy to answer any questions you may have
involving the Iraqi market. International experience
is important for the Middle East as a whole, and Iraq
should not be viewed as a target market for those
new to the region.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Isabel Schmiedbauer
is a delegate for
Economic Affairs of
theAustrian Economic
Chambers‘ Foreign
Trade Centre in Amman,
Jordan. She is responsible
for Iraq, Jordan,
Lebanon and Syria.
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