I would like to come back to the point of how we got here. You mentioned the point in the speech where we talked about how the previous government under Prime Minister al-Maliki had marginalized and in fact created the conditions for a good percentage of the population to be feeling totally disenfranchised.
I was ambassador to Iraq during this period, under the al-Maliki regime, and I served in a previous assignment in Syria. What I can tell you is that both of these societies are fundamentally moderate. They're very progressive. They're incredibly diverse. ISIL is not an entity that would naturally, under normal circumstances, enjoy the support of the population.
The new government in Iraq is truly an inclusive one, with representatives, cabinet ministers, from all the major parties—Sunni, Shia, Kurd. There's even a Christian minister. It has articulated a platform that is inclusive, which is entirely what the international community has been calling on them to do. But it is early days to point to whether or not they have succeeded. They've had some promising starts, but there's still a long way to go in terms of rolling out that platform in a meaningful way that has an impact—for example, ensuring that the armed forces are not only representative of the population but also effective. We've seen that they have a lot of needs before they can truly play that role.
The government itself has outlined a progressive agenda in terms of eliminating corruption. They have a promising start, but there's still a good deal of work to be done before we can claim victory on that front.