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Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs
February 2003 Background Note: Iraq
OFFICIAL NAME: Republic of Iraq
Geography
Area: 437,072 sq. km.; about the size of California.
Cities: Capital--Baghdad (pop. 3.8 million 1986 est.). Other
cities--Basrah,
Mosul, Karkuk, As Sulaymaniyah, Irbil.
Terrain: Alluvial plains, mountains, and desert.
Climate: Mostly hot and dry.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Iraqi(s).
Population (2002 est.): 24,011,816.
Annual growth rate (2002 est.): 2.82%.
Ethnic groups: Arab 75%-80%, Kurd 15%-20%, Turkman, Chaldean, Assyrian,
or
others less than 5%.
Religions: Shia Muslim 60%, Sunni Muslim 32%-37%, Christian 3%, Jewish
and
Yezidi less than 1%.
Languages: Arabic, Kurdish, Assyrian, Armenian.
Education: Years compulsory--primary school (age 6 through grade 6).
Literacy--58%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--57.61 deaths/1,000 (2002 est.). Life
expectancy--67.38 yrs.
Work force (2000, 4.4 million): Agriculture--44%; industry--26%;
services--31% (1989 est.).
Government
Type: Ruling Council.
Independence: 1932.
Interim constitution: 1970.
Branches: Executive--Revolutionary Command Council (RCC); President and
Council of Ministers appointed by the RCC. Legislative--National
Assembly of
members elected in 2000. Judicial--Civil, religious, and special courts.
Administrative subdivisions: 18 provinces.
Political parties: Ba'ath Party is only legal party in regime controlled
territory; Kurdistan Democratic Party and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan
are
opposition parties that control parts of northern Iraq.
Suffrage: Universal adult.
National holidays: Anniversaries of the 1958 and 1968 revolutions--July
14
and July 17.
Flag: Flag of Iraq
Economy
GDP (2001 est.): $59 billion.
Annual growth rate (2001 est.): 5.7%.
GDP per capita (2000 est.): $2,500.
Inflation rate (2001 est.): 60%.
Natural resources: Oil, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur.
Agriculture (less than 6% of GNP): Products--wheat, barley, rice,
cotton,
dates, poultry.
Industry: (less than 13% GNP): Types--petroleum, petrochemical, textile,
cement.
Trade (2001): Exports--$15.8 billion: crude oil. Major markets--Russia,
France, Switzerland, China. Imports--$11 billion: agricultural
commodities,
medicine, machinery. Major suppliers--Egypt, Russia, France, Vietnam.
GEOGRAPHY
Iraq is bordered by Kuwait, Iran, Turkey, Syria, Jordan, and Saudi
Arabia.
The country slopes from mountains over 3,000 meters (10,000 ft.) above
sea
level along the border with Iran and Turkey to the remnants of
sea-level,
reedy marshes in the southeast. Much of the land is desert or wasteland.
The mountains in the northeast are an extension of the alpine system
that
runs eastward from the Balkans into southern Turkey, northern Iraq,
Iran, and
Afghanistan, terminating in the Himalayas.
Average temperatures range from higher than 48 degrees C (120 degrees F)
in
July and August to below freezing in January. Most of the rainfall
occurs
from December through April and averages between 10 and 18 centimeters
(4-7
in.) annually. The mountainous region of northern Iraq receives
appreciably
more precipitation than the central or southern desert region.
PEOPLE
Almost 75% of Iraq's population live in the flat, alluvial plain
stretching
southeast toward Baghdad and Basrah to the Persian Gulf. The Tigris and
Euphrates Rivers carry about 70 million cubic meters of silt annually to
the
delta. Known in ancient times as Mesopotamia, the region is the
legendary
locale of the Garden of Eden. The ruins of Ur, Babylon, and other
ancient
cities are here.
Iraq's two largest ethnic groups are Arabs and Kurds. Other distinct
groups
are Turkomans, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Iranians, Lurs, and Armenians.
Arabic is
the most commonly spoken language. Kurdish is spoken in the north, and
English is the most commonly spoken Western language.
Most Iraqi Muslims are members of the Shi'a sect, but there is a large
Sunni
population as well, made up of both Arabs and Kurds. Small communities
of
Christians, Jews, Bahais, Mandaeans, and Yezidis also exist. Most Kurds
are
Sunni Muslim but differ from their Arab neighbors in language, dress,
and
customs.
HISTORY
Once known as Mesopotamia, Iraq was the site of flourishing ancient
civilizations, including the Sumerian, Babylonian, and Parthian
cultures.
Muslims conquered Iraq in the seventh century A.D. In the eighth
century, the
Abassid caliphate established its capital at Baghdad, which became a
frontier
outpost on the Ottoman Empire.
At the end of World War I, Iraq became a British-mandated territory.
When it
was declared independent in 1932, the Hashemite family, which also ruled
Jordan, ruled as a constitutional monarchy. In 1945, Iraq joined the
United
Nations and became a founding member of the Arab League. In 1956, the
Baghdad
Pact allied Iraq, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom, and
established its headquarters in Baghdad.
Gen. Abdul Karim Qasim took power in July 1958 coup, during which King
Faysal
II and Prime Minister Nuri as-Said were killed. Qasim ended Iraq's
membership
in the Baghdad Pact in 1959. Qasim was assassinated in February 1963,
when
the Arab Socialist Renaissance Party (Ba'ath Party) took power under the
leadership of Gen. Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr as prime minister and Col. Abdul
Salam
Arif as president.
Nine months later, Arif led a coup ousting the Ba'ath government. In
April
1966, Arif was killed in a plane crash and was succeeded by his brother,
Gen.
Abdul Rahman Mohammad Arif. On July 17, 1968, a group of Ba'athists and
military elements overthrew the Arif regime. Ahmad Hasan al-Bakr
re-emerged
as the President of Iraq and Chairman of the Revolutionary Command
Council
(RCC). In July 1979, Bakr resigned, and his chosen successor, Saddam
Hussein,
assumed both offices.
The Iran-Iraq war (1980-88) devastated the economy of Iraq. Iraq
declared
victory in 1988 but actually achieved a weary return to the status quo
antebellum. The war left Iraq with the largest military establishment in
the
Gulf region but with huge debts and an ongoing rebellion by Kurdish
elements
in the northern mountains. The government suppressed the rebellion by
using
weapons of mass destruction on civilian targets, including a mass
chemical
weapons attack on the city of Halabja that killed several thousand
civilians.
Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, but a U.S.-led coalition acting
under
United Nations (UN) resolutions expelled Iraq from Kuwait in
February1991.
After the war, UN-mandated sanctions based on Security Council
resolutions
called for the regime to surrender its weapons of mass destruction and
submit
to UN inspections. The regime has refused to fully cooperate with the UN
inspections and since 1998 has not allowed inspectors into Iraq. Iraq is
allowed under the UN Oil-for-Food program to export unlimited quantities
of
oil with which to purchase food, medicine, and other humanitarian relief
equipment and infrastructure support necessary to sustain the civilian
population. The UN coalition enforces no-fly zones in southern and
northern
Iraq to protect Iraqi citizens from attack by the regime and a no-drive
zone
in southern Iraq to prevent the regime from massing forces to threaten
or
again invade Kuwait.
GOVERNMENT
The Ba'ath Party rules Iraq through a nine-member RCC, which enacts
legislation by decree. The RCC's president (chief of state and supreme
commander or the armed forces) is elected by a two-thirds majority of
the
RCC. A Council of Ministers (cabinet), appointed by the RCC, has
administrative and some legislative responsibilities.
A 250-member National Assembly consisting of 220 elected by popular vote
who
serve a 4- year term, and 30 appointed by the president to represent the
three northern provinces, was last elected in March 2000. Iraq is
divided
into 18 provinces, each headed by a governor with extensive
administrative
powers.
Iraq's judicial system is based on the French model introduced during
Ottoman
rule and has three types of lower courts--civil, religious, and special.
Special courts try broadly defined national security cases. An appellate
court system and the court of cassation (court of last recourse)
complete the
judicial structure.
Principal Government Officials
President, RCC Chairman, Prime Minister, Ba'ath Party Regional Command
Secretary General--Saddam Hussein
Vice President--Taha Yasin Ramadan
Vice President--Taha Muhyi al-Din Ma'ruf
Ministers
Deputy Prime Minister--Tariq Aziz
Deputy Prime Minister--Abd Al-Tawab Mullah Huwaysh
Deputy Prime Minister--Ahmad Husayn Khudayir al-Samarrai
Minister of Information--Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Naji Sabri Hadithi
Minister of Finance, Deputy Premier--Hikmat al-Azzawi
UN Perm Rep--Muhammad al-Duri
Minister of Oil--Amir Rashid Muhammad al-Ubaydi
Minister of Trade--Mohammed Mahdi Salih
Minister of State--Arshad Mohammed al-Zibari
Minister of Health--Omeed Midhat Mubarak
Minister of Industry and Minerals--Muyassar Raja Shalah al-Tikriti
Minister of Justice--Mundhir Ibrahim al Shawi
Minister of Transport and Communications--Dr. Ahmed Murtadha Ahmed
Khalil
POLITICAL CONDITIONS
The Ba'ath Party controls the government and is the only recognized
political
party in regime controlled territory. Recent elections allowed for only
Ba'ath Party authorized candidates, resulting in the election, for
example,
of Uday Saddam Hussein to the National Assembly with 99.99% of the vote.
The
Kurdish Democratic Party led by Masoud Barzani and the Patriotic Union
of
Kurdistan led by Jalal Talabani are opposition parties, each of which
control
portions of northern Iraq. Both allow multiple political parties to
operate
in their areas and have held contested elections within the last year
that
international observers termed "generally fair". The Iraqi regime does
not
tolerate opposition. Opposition parties either operate illegally, as
exiles
from neighboring countries or in areas of northern Iraq outside regime
control.
ECONOMY
Iraq's economy is characterized by a heavy dependence on oil exports and
an
emphasis on development through central planning. Prior to the outbreak
of
the war with Iran in September 1980, Iraq's economic prospects were
bright.
Oil production had reached a level of 3.5 million barrels per day, and
oil
revenues were $21 billion in 1979 and $27 billion in 1980. At the
outbreak of
the war, Iraq had amassed an estimated $35 billion in foreign exchange
reserves.
The Iran-Iraq War depleted Iraq's foreign exchange reserves, devastated
its
economy, and left the country saddled with a foreign debt of more than
$40
billion. After hostilities ceased, oil exports gradually increased with
the
construction of new pipelines and the restoration of damaged facilities.
Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in August 1990, subsequent international
sanctions,
and damage from military action by an international coalition beginning
in
January 1991 drastically reduced economic activity. Government policies
of
diverting income to key supporters of the regime while sustaining a
large
military and internal security force further impaired finances, leaving
the
average Iraqi citizen facing desperate hardships. Implementation of a UN
oil-for-food program in December 1996 has improved conditions for the
average
Iraqi citizen. Since 1999, Iraq was authorized to export unlimited
quantities
of oil to finance humanitarian needs including food, medicine, and
infrastructure repair parts. Oil exports fluctuate as the regime
alternately
starts and stops exports, but, in general, oil exports have now reached
three-quarters of their pre-Gulf War levels. Per capita output and
living
standards remain well below pre-Gulf War levels.
Agriculture
Despite its abundant land and water resources, Iraq is a net food
importer.
Under the UN oil-for-food program, Iraq imports large quantities of
grains,
meat, poultry, and dairy products. The government abolished its farm
collectivization program in 1981, allowing a greater role for private
enterprise in agriculture. The Agricultural Cooperative Bank,
capitalized at
nearly $1 billion by 1984, targets its low-interest, low-collateral
loans to
private farmers for mechanization, poultry projects, and orchard
development.
Large modern cattle, dairy, and poultry farms are under construction.
Obstacles to agricultural development include labor shortages,
inadequate
management and maintenance, salinization, urban migration, and
dislocations
resulting from previous land reform and collectivization programs.
Importation of foreign workers and increased entry of women into
traditionally male labor roles have helped compensate for agricultural
and
industrial labor shortages exacerbated by the way. A disastrous attempt
to
drain the southern marshes and introduce irrigated farming to this
region
merely destroyed a natural food producing area, while concentration of
salts
and minerals in the soil due to the draining left the land unsuitable
for
agriculture.
Trade
The United Nations imposed economic sanctions on Iraq after it invaded
Kuwait
in 1990. The Government of Iraq's refusal to allow weapons inspectors
into
the country to dismantle Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program has
resulted in those sanctions remaining in place. Under the oil-for-food
program, Iraq is allowed to export unlimited quantities of oil in
exchange
for humanitarian relief supplies, including food, medicine, and
infrastructure spare parts. A robust illicit trade in oil with
neighboring
states and through the Persian Gulf continues to provide billions in
income
for the regime.
DEFENSE
The war with Iran ended with Iraq sustaining the largest military
structure
in the Middle East, with more than 70 divisions in its army and an air
force
of over 700 modern aircraft. Losses during the invasion of Kuwait and
subsequent ejection of Iraqi forces from Kuwait by a UN coalition
resulted in
the reduction of Iraq's ground forces to 23 divisions and air force to
less
than 300 aircraft. Military and economic sanctions prevent Iraq from
rebuilding its military power. Iraq still maintains standing military
forces
of over 380,000 men.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Iraqi-Iranian relations have remained cool since the end of the
Iraq-Iran War
in 1988. Outstanding issues from that war, including prisoner of war
exchanges and support of armed opposition parties operating in each
other's
territory, remain to be solved.
Iraq's relations with the Arab world have been extremely varied. Egypt
broke
relations with Iraq in 1977, following Iraq's criticism of President
Anwar
Sadat's peace initiatives with Israel. In 1978, Baghdad hosted an Arab
League
summit that condemned and ostracized Egypt for accepting the Camp David
accords. However, Egypt's strong material and diplomatic support for
Iraq in
the war with Iran led to warmer relations and numerous contacts between
senior officials, despite the continued absence of ambassadorial-level
representation. Since 1983, Iraq has repeatedly called for restoration
of
Egypt's "natural role" among Arab countries. In January 1984, Iraq
successfully led Arab efforts within the OIC to restore Egypt's
membership.
However, Iraqi-Egyptian relations were broken in 1990 after Egypt joined
the
UN coalition that forced Iraq out of Kuwait. Relations have steadily
improved
in recent years, and Egypt is now one of Iraq's main trade partners
under the
oil-for-food program.
Relations with Syria have been marred by traditional rivalry for
pre-eminence
in Arab affairs, allegations of involvement in each other's internal
politics, and disputes over the waters of Euphrates River, oil transit
fees,
and stances toward Israel. Syria broke relations after Iraq invaded
Kuwait in
1990 and joined other Arab countries in sending military forces to the
coalition that forced Iraq out of Kuwait. Relations remained cool until
Bashar al-Asad became President of Syria in 2000. Economic ties based on
illicit oil smuggling have strengthened, but politically the
relationship
remains distant.
Iraq's relations with Jordan have improved significantly since 1980,
when
Jordan declared its support for Iraq at the outset of the Iran-Iraq war.
Jordan's support for Iraq during the Gulf War resulted in a further
improvement of ties. Relations have cooled since the current King of
Jordan
took office in 2000, but remain good.
Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990 resulted in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and
most
Gulf states severing relations with Baghdad and joining the UN coalition
that
forced Iraqi forces out of Kuwait during the Gulf War. Iraq's refusal to
implement UN Security Council Resolutions and continued threats toward
Kuwait
have resulted in relations remaining cool.
Iraq participated in the Arab-Israeli wars of 1948, 1967 and 1973, and
traditionally has opposed all attempts to reach a peaceful settlement
between
Israel and the Arab States. Israel attacked Iraq's nuclear research
reactor
under construction near Baghdad in July 1981. During the Iran-Iraq war,
Iraq
moderated its anti-Israel stance considerably. In August 1982 President
Hussein stated to a visiting U. S. Congressman that "a secure state is
necessary for both Israel and the Palestinians." Iraq did not oppose
then
President Reagan's September 1, 1982 Arab-Israeli peace initiative, and
it
supported the moderate Arab position at the Fez summit that same month.
Iraq
repeatedly stated that it would support whatever settlement is found
acceptable by the Palestinians. However, after the end of the Iran-Iraq
war
in 1988, Iraq reverted to more stridently anti-Israel statements. During
the
Gulf War, Iraq fired Scud missiles at Israeli civilian targets in an
attempt
to divide the U. S. coalition, and, since the end of the Gulf War, Iraq
has
embraced the most extreme Arab hardline anti-Israel position, including
periodically calling for the total elimination of Israel.
Iraq belongs to the following international organizations: UN and some
of its
specialized agencies, including the World Bank, International Monetary
Fund
(IMF), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Nonaligned Movement;
Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC); Arab League; Organization
of
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC); Organization of Arab Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OAPEC); INTELSAT; Interpol; World Health
Organization
(WHO); G-19; G-77.
U.S.-IRAQI RELATIONS
The United States does not have diplomatic relations with Iraq; however,
it
does have an Interests Section in the Polish Embassy in Baghdad;
address:
P.O. Box 2051 Hay Babel, Baghdad; tel: [964] (1) 718-9267; fax: [964]
(1)
718-9297. Iraq has no diplomatic relations with the United States; it
has an
Interests Section in the Algerian Embassy in Washington, DC.
TRAVEL AND BUSINESS INFORMATION
The U.S. Department of State's Consular Information Program provides
Consular
Information Sheets, Travel Warnings, and Public Announcements. Consular
Information Sheets exist for all countries and include information on
entry
requirements, currency regulations, health conditions, areas of
instability,
crime and security, political disturbances, and the addresses of the
U.S.
posts in the country. Travel Warnings are issued when the State
Department
recommends that Americans avoid travel to a certain country. Public
Announcements are issued as a means to disseminate information quickly
about
terrorist threats and other relatively short-term conditions overseas
which
pose significant risks to the security of American travelers. Free
copies of
this information are available by calling the Bureau of Consular Affairs
at
202-647-5225 or via the fax-on-demand system: 202-647-3000. Consular
Information Sheets and Travel Warnings also are available on the
Consular
Affairs Internet home page: http://travel.state.gov.
***********************************************************
See http://www.state.gov/r/pa/bgn/ for all Background notes
************************************************************
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