Iraq outlined plans Tuesday for a new partnership with neighbors such as Iran on economic matters and security, in a speech delivered by an Iraqi government spokesman in Washington.
"Iraq will be in the heart of this proposed formula," Iraqi spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh told the United States Institute of Peace, a private research group.
The idea is aimed at building roads from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf, sharing water supplies, improving oil and gas transport, promoting joint economic projects and removing trade barriers. It would also be aimed at fighting terrorism and defusing border disputes.
Iraq could also be at the heart of a power grid linking Europe with the energy-rich Gulf states, he said.
He said there is "great interest" in the proposed "Regional Economic Partnership" involving Turkey, Iran, Syria, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
Dabbagh said the Iraqi government has discussed the plan informally with Kuwait, Syria and Turkey - but not yet with Iran.
The plan will help to "eliminate the seeds of hatred and mistrust" by bringing the region's ethnic and religious groups closer together, he said.
Dabbagh said Iraq can play a key role in regional integration because it is abandoning its past destabilizing role, and moving toward a democratic system with an ethnic and sectarian makeup that reflects the region's diversity.
Iraq is also in a good position as a potential economic pillar, with the world's second largest oil reserves after Saudi Arabia, and with its proximity to both the Gulf and Europe.
The plan would aim to ease the isolation felt by Kurds scattered throughout Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran, as well as the concerns of the Sunni Arab minority in Iraq and Arab minorities living in Turkey and Iran.
At the same time, Dabbagh said, the plan aims to ensure that Shiites, a long-oppressed majority in Iraq who are now the most powerful group, are not seen as a threat in the region.
Dabbagh envisioned integrating at a later phase the Gulf Arab states of Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
In introducing the plan, Dabbagh said it was time for Iraq and its partners to think of "a new era," now that the U.S. and Iraq have signed a security pact paving the way for the departure of U.S. troops in three years.
Dabbagh said the plan represented an "official vision" of the Iraqi government, and was being announced for the first time in this form.