The German Federal Ministry of Interior has seconded Ralf Schroeder as Deputy Head of Mission to EUAM Iraq. Ralf is a high-ranked Police officer with 30 years of career in the security sector and a special expertise in counterterrorism. Iraq is not an unknown country for him, he was the Head of Security for the Germany Embassy in 2003 and 2008 and promised himself to come back. 

Ralf, you assumed your duties as Deputy Head of Mission in November 2024. What are your first impressions of Iraq and the Mission so far?  

My very first impressions came when I was picked up and driven to our accommodation. I still had a picture of Baghdad from 2003 and 2008 in my head. The city has developed drastically compared to then. It is now much easier to get around Baghdad and there are fewer military and armed vehicles on the streets. All in all, it is much more welcoming and peaceful. When it comes to the Mission, I was impressed by the level of activities such as daily engagements, weekly workshops and study trips, as well as the professionalism of my colleagues, including their commitment and mutual support. During my many meetings with Iraqi counterparts, EU Ambassadors and international partners, it was clear how much the expertise and reliability of the Mission is appreciated among them. In short, my first impressions could not be better, and I have enjoyed being part of this Mission from day one and it gets better every day.

 What motivated you to apply for this position?  

When I was in Iraq in 2003 just after the war and then again 2008, I could feel the insecurity about the future of the country. But even then, I liked Iraq and was impressed by the hospitality and resilience of the people and, of course, by Iraq’s outstanding history. There was always an idea of coming back to Iraq one day. In the following years, I continued working abroad and liked it more and more. Working at EUAM Iraq offers me again this challenging international working environment and the opportunity to shape the direction of the Mission through actions and decisions. In addition, it is great to be connected internally and externally with so many interesting people.

 What are your top three priorities? 

 That is quite easy – I would call them Iraqis, Iraqis, Iraqis meaning this is the reason why I and we are here – to support our Iraqi counterparts and thus paving the way to a stable and safe Iraq. Everything we do needs to be aligned with this overarching goal. And it does not matter which activity we are talking about. We must be aware that planned activities that are not directly related to the fulfilment of our mandate must wait if we could support local partners. Personally, my priority is to build trustful relationships with the Iraqi authorities, listen to them and supporting them with the expertise they need. No matter who I deal with, both internally and externally, transparency, open-mindedness and being a role model are key elements of my personal behavior.