VILNIUS - Defense Minister Linas Linkevicius became the world's first high-ranking official to greet the new Iraqi government in Baghdad on July 5, just one week after the U.S.-led provisional authority transferred sovereignty to an interim Iraqi administration.
The delegation, including Foreign Ministry's Secretary Sarunas Adomavicius and parliamentary defense committee Chairman Arvydas Sadeckas, arrived in Baghdad July 5 on a Latvian-registered An-74 cargo plane carrying over 1 ton of supplies for the over 150 Lithuanian troops serving in the country.
At a meeting with Iraqi Defense Minister Hazem Sha-Alan July 6, Linkevicius promised both political and military assistance to the new government.
Together with Adomavicius, Linkevicius told Sha-Alan that Lithuania would establish diplomatic relations with his administration as soon as possible.
Furthermore, citing their country's experience in establishing democratic systems following the collapse of a totalitarian regime, Linkevicius and Adomavicius invited Sha-Alan to attend this autumn's elections to the Seimas (Lithuania's parliament) as an observer.
U.S. diplomats have voiced hopes that Iraq would hold elections as early as this January.
"We have started from zero, and in a particularly difficult situation. We have little experience building the structures of civil rule," Sha-Alan told a press conference attended by a BNS reporter who traveled with the delegation.
While it remains unclear if Iraqi leaders would accept the invitation, Defense Ministry officials stressed that Lithuania has already begun a program of assistance for the fledgling government.
"We have been training soldiers and police officers in Iraq, and we will continue to do so," Rita Grumdaite, Linkevicius' press secretary, told The Baltic Times from Iraq.
On July 5 Linkevicius met with Mieczyslaw Bieniek, commander of the Iraqi zone under Polish control, in which the Lithuanian troops are serving.
Linkevicius also greeted the Lithuanian troops themselves, passing along greetings from President-elect Valdas Adamkus.
While the timing of the visit made an indelible Baltic mark on post-Saddam Iraqi history, the Defense Ministry said that Linkevicius had not specifically intended to be the first such ranking official from the international community to meet with his Iraqi counterpart.
"The visit was planned long ago. Originally it was supposed to happen before July 1, when power was to be handed over," said Grumdaite.
On his last visit to Iraq in November, Linkevicius met with top leaders of the international coalition that invaded the country last March, including Paul Bremer.
According to Grumdaite, constant changes in planning on both sides made it impossible to meet with American officials during this trip.
Lithuania was one of the first countries to pledge troops to the coalition following the toppling of Saddam Hussein.
Soldiers currently on the ground are involved in protecting military base camps, searching civilian vehicles for weapons and other contraband, and other humanitarian and peacekeeping missions.
According to Grumdaite, the primary damper on the international feelings of goodwill was the weather, which proved decidedly un-Lithuanian.
"It's 47 degrees here," she said.
