Thread by @RudawEnglish

Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the head of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI), begins her speech at the Sulaimani Forum.
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"While these elections were widely recognized as transparent and incredible, which is no small feat for a young democracy, soon after Iraq found itself in an extremely volatile post-electoral environment," Plasschaert said, referring to previous clashes in Baghdad.
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"The patience and resilience of Iraqis will continue to be tested. Why? Because no one can expect the new government - this government - to accomplish miracles overnight," the UNAMI head said.
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"These events, over the past 20 years, did not only compound existing fragilities inherited from the previous decade, they also exposed new weaknesses," Plasschaert stated.
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"Systemic corruption, weak governance, poor service delivery, unemployment, and the overwhelming reliance on oil," Plasschaert listed, referring to Iraq's primary problems.
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"The recent confirmation of Iraq's new government under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani provides a new window of opportunity ... to steer the country back to stability," the UNAMI head said, adding "Iraq is not a lost cause."
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"The kind of in-depth change needed now requires relentless levels of commitment from all actors," Plasschaert stated.
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"It is important to focus, to not get distracted, or create new and unnecessary headaches for the government. In other words, to break the cycles of instability," she continued.
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"High oil prices cannot keep the country afloat. Similarly, creating jobs cannot be sustained by further ballooning the public sector," the UNAMI head warned. "The system that was built after 2003 is simply unattainable."
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"It would be naïve to think that the legacy of past hardships and newly emerged threats will not continue to test the country's resilience," Plasschaert said, calling on Iraqis to "learn from history" and prevent further issues from emerging.
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