Ismail Khelil: An Old Washington Hand Is Tunisia's New US Ambassador

By Oussania Romdhani

In April, talks by Ismail Khelil at Meridian House in Washington, DC gave the new Tunisian ambassador to the United States his first opportunity to meet with people in the national capital who consider North Africa's Maghreb region their beat.

The Tunisian envoy who, until last summer, was his country's minister of foreign affairs, is an old hand in the United States. His first tour of duty in the US capital dates back to the 1960s. Subsequently, he served as Tunisia's ambassador to Great Britain, Belgium, and the EEC. When next he returned to the US capital, he was elected executive director of the World Bank (representing Algeria, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Yemen, Iran, Afghanistan and Ghana). Later, he returned regularly to Washington in his capacity as minister of planning and finance and as governor of the Tunisian Central Bank. Year after year, Mr. Khelil led the Tunisian delegation to annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Washington.

Reformulating Relations

High on the agenda of the new Tunisian ambassador is the new reformulation of relations in the aftermath of the Gulf war of 1991. Without ignoring the adverse effects of the Gulf conflict on Tunisian-American relations, Ambassador Khelil does not believe that the war caused either permanent or substantial damage to the relationship.

"More than anything else, it was a case of misperceptions and misunderstandings, " he asserts. "It was unfortunate that too often, during the crisis, Tunisia was labeled 'pro-Saddam.' That was very misleading. Never during the crisis did we try to align ourselves with any camp. If we were pro-anything, we were pro-peace. And if our sympathy was with anybody, it was the peoples of the region, be they Iraqi, Kuwaiti, or Saudi."

He emphasizes that Tunisia was among the first Arab states to condemn the Iraqi occupation and annexation of Kuwait. His country's embassy, he adds, was among the last Arab embassies to close its doors in Kuwait City. Nevertheless, he points out, Tunisia did, in conformity with some other Arab countries, express "reservations" about the intervention of foreign troops and the use of force for the settlement of the conflict.

"We were not trying to appease anybody at the expense of international legality or moral fairness, " he explains. "We were interested in redressing a grievance against a fellow Arab country and preventing further bloodshed and havoc. Tunisia's moderate and peaceful legacy was never one which condoned transgressions."

Ambassador Khelil says he will be less interested in justifying things past than exploring future prospects of cooperation between Tunis and Washington.

"For more than 35 years, we have come to appreciate US development assistance to Tunisia," he explains. "Our cooperation with the US has probably to adjust to a new set of variables, but the overall thrust should be toward the strengthening of our relationship.

"Cooperation between the United States and Tunisia, " he predicts," will be geared toward the intensification of business and trade relations. Beyond its own growing market, Tunisia can be a springboard for American businesses interested in European, Arab, and African markets. " Arguing in favor of such a new focus, Mr. Khelil mentions "the wide-ranging economic and political reforms" undertaken by Tunisia, especially since the accession to power of President Ben Ali in 1987.

"Our aim is to create a free and open society," he explains, "where the state intervenes not to infringe upon private initiative, but to protect the basic rights of its citizens."

As far as the region is concerned, the Tunisian ambasssador believes that the establishment of real stability hinges upon the fair settlement of the Palestinian issue and the creation of a more viable inter-Arab order. "Violence does not breed peace and the selective approaches cannot solve the sensitive and deeply intricate issues of the Middle East, " he cautions. The Tunisian envoy believes that the North African countries have a definite role to play in the search for peace and stability in the Middle East. "The Maghreb is evidently part and parcel of the Arab world," he says. "Any search for regional security and development can in no way ignore the North African region."

The gradual integration of the economics of such Maghreb states as Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco, Ambassador Khelil says, is "the surest way to develop the vast but underutilized potentialities of the region" and meet the demands of a young population that will number over 100 million by the year 2010. Such economic integration, he adds, is the best way to lend weight—and credibility—to North Africa as it tries to impose itself as a valid interlocutor with the European Economic Community. It could, also, he says, "lay the ground for the emergence of an integrated Arab market."

Economics a Major Catalyst

Many of the ideas Mr. Khelil offers for the region reflect his conviction that economics can provide a major catalyst for improving international relations. Such thinking is not surprising in a civil servant who has spent a great part of his career devising and fine tuning economic projects. In 1984 and 1987, he served as chairman of the board of governors of the African Development Bank and of the Islamic Development Bank. During the same period, he has also played an important role in the formulation and launching of Tunisia's structural adjustment plan.

More than anything else, the Tunisian ambassador believes that the post-war strategy of the Arab world should include the establishment of a more viable economic balance among the countries of the Arab world. "Nobody questions the sovereignty of the countries of the region over their natural resources, " he adds, "but to ignore the issue of inter-Arab distribution of wealth would only deepen frustrations and play into the hands of extremists," says Ismail Khelil.

On a larger scale, the Tunisian ambassador welcomes the idea of a regional development fund, proposed by Secretary of State James Baker, and that of a Mediterranean development bank, put forward by the European Community. Deeply convinced that European and Western countries are directly imperiled by economic instability in the southern flank of the Mediterranean, he says, Tunisia has advocated similar regional initiatives for years.

The Tunisian ambassador believes that it is crucial that a more positive financial flow should be promoted between European and the least endowed countries of the Arab world. In this regard, cooperation between the EEC and the countries of the Maghreb could provide a model for this type of relationship. Pointing out that Tunisia has intensified its efforts to woo American businessmen and investors, he noted that investments could very well complement those of Europe.

Preoccupation With the Debt Issue

Ambassador Khelil's preoccupation is the debt issue. He says that now, more than ever, such innovative approaches as debt-for-development purposes, whereby the debt service is reinvested in development projects and private ventures, could be pursued. US budget constraints can make such new ideas even more appealing, he believes. "It is obvious that public assistance funds are becoming more and more difficult to find, " he says. "The promotion of foreign investments and the exploration of debt alleviation could offer promising alternatives."

Ambassador Khelil hardly flaunts his credentials, but does not shy away from using them to make a point. In a recent speaking engagement in Washington, he refuted the notion that Tunisia had abstained in the Aug. 3 Arab League vote denouncing Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.

"Some in the media seem convinced that we abstained, " he said. "I am in a position to know that it was not the case. It was I who cast Tunisia's vote."

Such credentials should be a great asset to the Tunisian envoy as he follows in the footsteps of Tunisian envoys to the United State who have preceeded him for nearly two centuries, starting in 1803.

Oussama Romdhani is a correspondent for the Tunisian News Agency in Washington, DC