UN General Assembly
2003

guardianship, because the Iraqi citizen is not a minor and is therefore not in need of the State’s interference in all his affairs. Our concern is to ensure that this relationship is based on care, with the State being the vigilant servant of the citizen, and on nurturing in some areas, especially with regard to the provision of education and social and health services for young people. Complementing our belief in federalism, and in contrast with the vain and false nationalist excesses of the previous regime, we declare that Iraq is one nation, permanent and whole. Nothing in this declaration belittles the continuity of our Arab and Muslim heritage, or contradicts the sentiments of many Iraqis about their own culture and national identity. Rather, it confirms that all the territory of Iraq — from its mountains in the far north to its marshes and the Gulf in the extreme south, including its rivers, plains and deserts — is a lasting, indivisible unit. This is an expression not only of the