Baghdad, Iraq – As the new year dawns, Iraq marks a significant turning point with the conclusion of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) mandate. After more than 22 years of operations, the mission officially ends on Wednesday evening, signaling a period of relative stability and ongoing recovery from decades of conflict.
The closure of UNAMI comes at the request of the Iraqi government. The UN Security Council approved a final extension last year, setting the expiration date for December 31, 2025. UNAMI was established in 2003 following the US-led invasion and the fall of Saddam Hussein’s regime, with the initial purpose of providing support and counsel during Iraq’s political transition.
On Tuesday, the caretaker government authorized Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein to sign a memorandum of understanding outlining the UNAMI closure plan. According to the government statement, the plan addresses transitional security arrangements, the handover of the UNAMI compound in Baghdad, and the disposition of mission assets.
Throughout its tenure, UNAMI played a crucial role in supporting Iraq’s political process. Its mandate encompassed various areas, including fostering political dialogue, supporting national reconciliation, assisting with electoral processes, and providing advice on security sector reform. The mission faced significant security challenges from the outset, including the devastating bombing of the UN headquarters in Baghdad on August 19, 2003, which killed the Special Representative of the Secretary-General, Sergio Vieira de Mello, and 21 others.
With Iraq achieving greater stability, particularly following the defeat of the Islamic State group, which controlled large swathes of the country between 2014 and 2017, Iraqi authorities determined that the rationale for a continued UN political mission no longer existed. A former Iraqi government official stated that the end of UNAMI’s mission demonstrates the substantial transformation Iraq has undergone. He noted that “Iraq today is not the country it once was.”
