Undersecretary for Political Planning Affairs and Deputy National Security Advisor Participates in Seminar at Foreign Service Institute

Ambassador Dr. Hisham Al-Alawi, Foreign Ministry Undersecretary for Political Planning Affairs, hosted Dr. Issam Al Saadi, Deputy National Security Advisor of Iraq, in a special Seminar held at the Ministry’s Foreign Service Institute, titled “The Role of National Security in Foreign Policy Making”. The Seminar was attended by the Dean of the Foreign Service Institute and a group of Employees and students of the 28^th diplomatic course.

At the beginning of the Seminar, Dr. Al-Alawi stressed that the environment surrounding Iraq makes the current government face many challenges in national security field, in addition to the heavy legacy, due to the wrong policies of the dictatorial regime before 2003, adding that the foreign policy issues are closely linked to national security, such as water files, climate changes, regional conflicts, terrorism, organized crime, epidemics, economic crises and other issues related to the Foreign Ministry, emphasizing that when the current government set foreign policy goals, focused on protecting Iraq’s sovereignty first and enhancing internal security to deal with external threats, in addition he indicated the importance of the role of the National Security Advisory and the necessity of high coordination with the Foreign Ministry to strengthen the foundations of security and protect the country’s best interests.

On his part, Mr. Al Saadi, explained the concept of national security and its goals, including preserving the country’s interests, independence, sovereignty and protecting its internal security from internal and external threats, in addition to reviewing the history of the founding of the National Security Council and how its members were elected after the democratic transition the country witnessed after 2003, as the role of the National Security Council during the former regime was limited only to a policing role, indicating the expansion of National Security Council role to include all aspects of the state.

During the Seminar, the guest provided a comprehensive explanation of the composition of the National Security Council, specifying the effective and important role of the Foreign Ministry in the Council, and the importance of continued cooperation between the two parties in this regard.