This essay will describe how to realize the political goal of providing the basis for long term security and stability in Iraq. The Diplomatic, Informational, Military and Economic (DIME) capabilities of the United States, Iraq, their coalition partners, regional & global states, and NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) within this essay will be leveraged against the Center of Gravity (CoG) of Iraq’s instability, Cultural Identity, to bring it into proportion with national identity and restore stability. Cultural Identity can be defined as the belief system through which people perceive the world they live in. There are several key sub-systems of Iraqi Cultural Identity: Ethnic Identities (Kurd, Turkmen and Arab), Tribal (Barzani, Al-Jabori, Al-Hussein) and the Religious Belief System (Shia’a, Sunni, Christian and Yizidi). This strategy proposes that the Iraqi Religious Belief System has been perverted by Political Islam (specific visions of Islam being promoted as a form of government to advance a political objective), and that this is the catalyst of polarization used by insurgent-extremists for justification of hatred and moral apathy. It is the chief element of destabilization in Iraq through which others are exaggerated and influenced.
This essay proposes that because Cultural Identity is so important, only by overcoming the perceived benefits by Shia and Sunni, Kurd and Arab of a government which is more exclusive to their single Islamic sect or ethnic group can Iraqis find stability. Only by balancing normal cultural beliefs with the benefits of national identity, can Iraq succeed in providing a base, pluralistic government from which long term stability will grow.
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