For Immediate Release
July 20, 2004

Global Message

From remarks by Deputy Secretary of State Armitage, 7/18/04

The mission of the United States in Iraq is quite simple:

• There is a sovereign government in Iraq;
• The U.S. supports that government to the absolute extent we can.
• We're committed to the Iraqi government.

Iraq recently announced that it is sending ambassadors to 43 countries. This is another sign that Iraqis are making decisions and are reengaging in the international community.

Iraqis, including the President and Prime Minister are making decisions about the future of Iraq. Today, the United States supports our partner - the sovereign Iraqi government.

The American Embassy staff in Baghdad has grown to several hundred employees, and there eventually may be seven or eight hundred local Iraqi employees working with Ambassador Negroponte and his team.