THE MINISTER: My sense is that we’re looking at two dangers. The danger of confrontation: given the logic of force that has been engaged, we’re seeing a rise in acts of terrorism causing a growing number of victims, which is arousing deep concern everywhere in France. Then there’s the danger of break-up: I am struck by the fact that the Iraqi people are not being given responsibility in the actions today of the coalition. The risk is that these two factors will increasingly reduce the chances of success for Iraq’s reconstruction.

The situation is fraught with danger for the country and the entire region. So the question is how to act for the greatest effectiveness. I believe that the security-based approach is not the way to put Iraq back on track. One needs to move on from the idea of occupation to a policy for restoring Iraq’s sovereignty. It is urgent to implement this new approach which should be a salutary electric shock for everyone.

THE MINISTER: The temptation exists to emphasize a security-based policy without investing in the political field. One needs to be lucid. I don’t think that it is solely by declaring war on terrorism, by emphasizing the security aspect—even though obviously everything must be done on that front—that one will succeed. I think you do so by giving priority to a political démarche to give the Iraqis control of their future.

That also implies the commitment of the entire international community, through the United Nations, to support and supervise the process and give it complete legitimacy.

In such a context, there has to be the courage to take the measures that are required. We mustn’t remain in a state of ambiguity even though we know there will be no easy solution. But the path of collective responsibility is the only one which will enable us to escape the trap we’re caught in today.

THE MINISTER: First of all by transforming the Iraqi governing council into a real provisional government capable of taking decisions independently so as to continue the effort to restore order to Iraq. With priority specifically for restoring essential public services.

The provisional government should be asked to prepare elections, if possible by the end of the year, in order to elect a constituent assembly. A special representative of the UN secretary-general should be named to the government to supervise the political transition process.

THE MINISTER: It is important for responsibility to be exercised by the Iraqis themselves. It is with the Iraqis and through them that we’ll be able to break the impasse. We shouldn’t just aim towards this objective; the timetable for political transition should be speeded up because the situation is serious and urgent. Once again, the main thing is to move from the security-based approach to the idea of sovereignty. To strengthen the legitimacy of the provisional government, you need the support of the UN and all the countries in the region as well as such organizations as the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic Conference.

THE MINISTER: Afghanistan does indeed show the difficulties of international action. It doesn’t mean that by mobilizing for a still greater effort over time that we’ll not succeed better in that country. The main challenge in Afghanistan is the need to bolster the government of Mr. Karzai. If the international community substitutes itself purely and simply—whether we’re talking about Afghanistan or Iraq—for peoples, there’s the risk of finding itself in the position of the accused

THE MINISTER: Admittedly, it’s a thin line. The whole art is in execution. That’s where the time factor comes in: you have to move fast because in situations like this you have a race between the forces of destabilization and demobilization, and the need to rebuild. And when I say move fast in Iraq, I mean moving much faster. In general I think the international community must take into greater account the urgency.

THE MINISTER: Yes, the same patterns are at work, with the same phenomena of demobilization and resentment. You see it clearly in the Middle East. Take the Palestinians. They don’t see the dividends of the prospects for peace nor their daily lives becoming more normal. There comes a time when nobody believes it! And despair sets in. If we wish to avoid this—and I also think that the Israelis are experiencing the same tragedy in the face of the increasing number of attacks—if we want peace to be credible and not just a pious wish, the international community cannot content itself with half measures.

The same is true in Iraq where we have to reverse the logic and take decisions on a par with the stakes. The real challenge is to accept the world as it is is without mistaking the objective. At the present time we’re threatened with a vacuum in Iraq which can only be filled by the affirmation of Iraqi sovereignty.

There’s still the question of security. It will be up to the Iraqi government to say how it wishes to be aided by the international community. For now, security is a matter for the coalition forces. But if we are to be fully effective, we will not be content to adjust or broaden the present mechanisms. A real international force needs to be set up under UN mandate. The most urgent issue is sovereignty. It’s legitimacy for an Iraqi authority. That has to be the starting point, not the end in itself.

THE MINISTER: The same reasoning holds true for the Middle East. We must take care not to fall into the same scenario for despair. It’s important that those who want to, both on the Israeli side and the Palestinian, move towards peace, that they can see it as a credible path. I think it’s dangerous to launch into overly long processes. We must appreciate the seriousness of the situation and speed up implementation of the roadmap. There too, after the latest attack in Jerusalem, if we are to stem this new cycle of violence, a galvanizing “electric” shock is needed: let’s have an international conference very quickly; let’s move on elections on the Palestinian side; let’s begin a deployment of international forces in the field which would, when the time comes, change the equation. We must show the people of countries in the region that the givens are changing. Let’s drop the idea of pre-conditions for launching a real dynamic for peace. The Palestinians must clearly demonstrate their willingness to end the attacks, the Israelis must move faster in withdrawing from the territories and releasing the prisoners. Irreversible gestures are needed to show that everyone has understood the need to take the risk for peace now.

THE MINISTER: How do you escape a situation where, every time there’s a step towards peace, it is held in check by terrorism? So often in the world today, in the face of crisis, one must move fast. So that the peoples in this region can very quickly identify the tangible results of a political gain. We must adopt the logic of action and results. If the Palestinians actively address the violence and place the most radical organizations before their responsibilities, if on its side Israel provides tangible proof of its commitment to a viable Palestinian state established alongside it, then we will at last be able to break out of the vicious cycle. Yet today, we see that a growing segment of the Palestinian population has doubts and a growing number of Israelis are wondering if peace, finally, is not a trap. By constantly putting back the timetables, we risk finding ourselves in an even graver situation. So it’s essential for the international community to have the courage to force the hand, to force the future. For peace to become credible.

Faced with this challenge and all the others, we have to choose resolve over chaos. We have to do everything to ensure the unity of the international community, which is one of the essential conditions for success. That is the constructive spirit in which we wish to work, in particular with our European partners and our American friends with whom we share the same pressing need for action and the same rejection of the status quo./.