Stevenson Straun is a Scotch Parliament Member and has been representing Scotland in the European Parliament since 1999 up to the day, and he is also the Head of the European Parliament Delegation to Iraq. To discuss the perspectives of the European Parliament Delegation regarding to the withdrawal of the US Forces from Iraq and the future of the country, particularly when the Head of the European Parliament Delegation been in Iraq in the few past months and visited Baghdad and Erbil. Therefore; and in this respect, Gulan Magazine have contacted Mr. Straun and made an exclusive interview with him, and his Excellency responded to our questions as shown bellow:

* The mission of the US in occupying Iraq was to make a democratic, federal and a model country out of Iraq for the whole area, but after 8 years in spite of not having the mission succeeded, the US is currently withdrawing from Iraq and there is the risk that the withdrawal endangers the security situation of Iraq. In your view; if Iraq's situation becomes unstable, to what extend is it going to be a space for terrorists?
- I visited Iraq in April this year, I was in Baghdad and in Erbil, and I saw the sharp contrast between the situation in Kurdistan and the situation in the rest of Iraq. At that time in Baghdad there was only 6 hours of electricity a day, some of the citizens of Iraq have no access to clean drinking water, there is high unemployment, there is endemic corruption, in fact internationally Iraq is listed as the second most corrupt country in the world, only Somalia is worse. And most of the articles of the Erbil Agreement in which the coalition government was founded have not been implemented. So; clearly there is a long way to go before a model democracy can be proclaimed. I met with president Barzani of Kurdistan last week in Brussels, and he informed me that; still there is only 6 hours electricity; there is not much improvement in the situation since I was there in April. So; clearly the situation is not improving as the way I was promised would improve, I was told by the end of this year there would be at least 12 hours of electricity a day and that by the middle of the next year there would be 24 hours of electricity, well; that’s just not happening. And the citizens of Iraq are suffering as a consequence, on top of all that you have a very bad security situation, where there are assassinations, and attacks on a regular basis, there is clear oppression of minorities, I am sad to say that I found the whole situation very disappointing. The contrast on the other hand with Kurdistan; where there is no terrorism, there is no security problem, there is about %9 annual growth in the economy, there is a lot of inward investment, there is 24 hours a day electricity, clean drinking water, high employment, and in fact Kurdistan is becoming a refuge for refugees fleeing from violence and oppression in other parts of Iraq. So; I really have to say that I am sad to criticize Iraq in this way, but very little seems to be happening under the current government, and I think the people of Iraq deserve better, and I think the Americans should be ashamed that they have created this horrendous mass and they are now walking out at the end of this year leaving behind this shambles.

* How far do you think that the suspended problems and the tensions between the Iraqi key components; the Shiites, the Sunnis, and the Kurds may endanger the unity of Iraq?
- I hope not. I mean, I come from Scotland where we have a similar situation to Kurdistan; we have our own autonomous government, which has devolved responsibilities for certain aspects of; in situations like health, education, transport, and employment, but not for defense, foreign affairs, and social security. Kurdistan has an autonomous government in a very similar way; Scotland has great oil resources, so does Kurdistan. I think the Kurds have integrated well and live in harmony with the rest of Iraq, but the rest of Iraq should try to emulate Kurdistan in resolving corruption, improving employment prospects, getting their economy growing again, and having a democratic government that represents all of the people and not just factions of society.

* To what extend do you believe that Iraq will be a ground for external interference after the withdrawal of the US forces?
- Of course it is quite evident that Iran is interfering on a daily basis in the internal affairs of Iraq. And Iran is one of the most poisonous and dangerous countries in the world today. And it shameful that Iraq should allow such interference from a country that has no respect for human rights, women’s rights, or global security because they are clearly developing nuclear weapons. It really is a pariah state and Iraq should not allow the “Mulas” from Tehran to interfere in their internal affairs. And I think the Americans are walking away from this and destabilizing an already unstable situation.

* Last Question: The Kurds have established a secure and democratic region in Iraq. In your view; to what extend do you think that the United States will take Kurdistan into consideration and will protect it from the violence in the rest of Iraq?
- One of the reasons that Kurdistan has been free from terrorist bombings and assassinations is because the border between Kurdistan and the rest of Iraq has been effectively guarded by the Pishmarga for some years, and I think the Kurds are perfectly capable of looking after their own interests, but I repeat the fact that the American withdraw from Iraq is premature and will not help to stabilize a very sensitive and delicate situation.

* Last words and your message to the Kurdish population:
- I can congratulate Kurdistan on the huge progress that they have made towards freedom, democracy, respect for human rights, respect for women’s rights; the inward investment in Kurdistan is bringing increase prosperity to the country. I take my hat off to Kurdistan; it should act as a shining example to the rest of Iraq, and indeed to the rest of the Middle East in how democracy can be made to work. So; the real model for democracy is Kurdistan, not the rest of Iraq.