ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - For the first time in 16 years, the Iraqi parliament on Tuesday approved the long-delayed appointment of over 93 new ambassadors in a vote, to represent Baghdad abroad, including 19 Kurds, with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani welcoming the move, calling on the fresh diplomats to execute their responsibilities with “highest professionalism.”
“No vote on ambassadorial posts had taken place since 2009,” Prime Minister Sudani’s office wrote in a statement, stressing “the importance of the ambassadors performing their duties with the highest professionalism in representing Iraq abroad, safeguarding its interests, and looking after Iraqis in the countries where they will serve.”
Iraq’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also welcomed the move, describing it as a “step to strengthen the diplomatic presence of Iraq,” overseas.
Of the approved candidates, 19 are Kurds - ten from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), eight from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), and one from the influential Sunni Taqadum Party. The full list also includes 49 Shiites - among them one Shiite Turkmen and a Faili Kurd - 23 Sunnis, two Christians, one Yazidi, and one Sabianist-Mandaeist - an ethno-religious group in Iraq.
The ambassadors are set to take their legal oath before President Abdul Latif Rashid soon, Dana Jaza, one of the selected Kurdish candidates, confirmed to Rudaw, adding they will then join a training course at Iraq's Foreign Service Institute, though no specific postings have yet been assigned.
Many of the newly-appointed ambassadors have already been criticized by lawmakers for being close associates to Iraq’s political elite.
In late June, Iraq’s Council of Ministers approved the ambassadorial list, a move that quickly drew criticism from parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee and other lawmakers, who said it reflected political power-sharing and nepotism. They accused political parties of securing positions for relatives of top leaders, warning this undermines Iraq’s diplomatic reputation.
Iraq maintains over 70 embassies and 16 consulates across the world.