>> as a result of that meeting, was there any -- were we enlightened by it? or any indication that there is progress, momentum, results, deadlines? because we've got, you know -- it's been six months, and the concern here is obvious. it's about human nature when you have that kind of an internal conflict. and the winner, in this case, kind of the sinhalese side of the debate that. >> win, they have power, and they have their commission set up. the question is will they ever be able to implement recommendations, and should we in fact have an international independent investigation? >> senator, not just the u.s., but many international partners of course voted in march in

geneva at the u.n. human rights council on a u.s.-sponsored resolution on reconciliation and accountability. there has been an international call for progress on both reconciliation and accountability because one cannot have true reconciliation, genuine reconciliation without that accountability. there are credible, serious allegations. i completely agree of crimes committed by both sides in terms of violations, i should say, of international human rights and international humanitarian law. so we do look for near-term progress benchmarks to be met, particularly on setting a date for the provincial elections in the north, specifically

demilitarization in the north. and if confirm i can commit to you and your colleagues that human rights protections of civil society in the media to do their job will be on the top of my agenda. i do believe that we can have constructive engagement at the same time, principled engagement that keeps human rights protections rule of law at the forefront. >> and look, i know this has been a priority. but when people see almost no progress on the implementation or recommendations, this question of an international investigation is going to present itself continually. and i realize it's sensitive. it's a difficult question for the administration. but i'd say two things. number one, it's not going to go away until they see -- until the world sees results. so the question won't go away.

and number two, i'd urge you upon confirmation to use every bit of energy and persuasion and cajoling and anything else you can bring to bear on the leadership in sri lanka to get results. because in the end people aren't going to be satisfied until we see those results, meaning progress on the recommendations. senator risch? >> thank you, mr. chairman. mr. mcgurk, you commented about the kurd. and i'm interested in that. i'd like to pursue that a little bit further. it seems to me as an outsider looking at this, the kurds seem to be doing very well on their own. the construction that is going on there far outstrips what is being done in baghdad and other parts of iraq. they just seem to be progressing. having said that, it would it

seems to me that they're being left alone to a degree because of the for lack of a better word chaos down south. what is your view as to what is going to happen as this thing, you blame this, the rub right now you blamed on personalities. i think i picked up from your statement. but i think it's going to go deeper than that. once baghdad gets its act together and you see what is happening with the kurds, and the kurds as is pointed out, they're moving away and are happy to move away, and seem to be doing very well moving away. i don't think that's going to set very well with baghdad as time moves on. can i get your thoughts on that? >> thank you, senator. and it's far deeper than personalities. i don't want to leave that impression. these issues are -- some of them are centuries in the making, and it could take centuries to really resolve for good. between the kurds and the arabs,

there is obviously issue on what we call the disputed internal boundaries. that still remains unresolved. it would be my commitment if confirmed to work through the process that is designed through article 140 of the constitution, and the u.n. will play a role in that, to get the sides together to begin discussing in a serious way an equitable resolution to the disputed internal boundaries. also, nothing could go further to stem these centrifugal forces that you're suggesting the resolutions on hydrocarbons emission. we have made a go at that over the years. made some progress in 2007, and had a package of laws that were pretty close. my last trip in baghdad, even in the midst of a political crisis, i found a new urgency among some of the key players to return to the table on the issue of

national hydrocarbons. if i'm confirmed that will be one of my central priorities to do everything i can. we can do shuttling and figure out where are the areas of agreement we can build on and where can we narrow the areas of disagreement. without consensus on how to manage the national hydrocarbon resource, centrifugal forces can increase. focusing on the 140 process and hydrocarbons legislation will be very important. >> you think the parties are amenable to that resolution? >> some of them are and some of them aren't. there is a lot of division within the kurdish region, and there is division in baghdad among all of the many parties. and one of the key things to do is to try to find the leaders who are in a compromising frame of mind to work sometimes behind closed doors to build compromise. and it can be very difficult. i can't underestimate the challenges of this issue.

the kurds want to develop their national -- their resources in their region. and under the constitution, they have a right to. in baghdad, they want to develop the resources in a national way in which baghdad government has a say. and under the constitutions as they read it, they have a right to. what we need to do is find a compromise within the constitutional framework. my hope is that as iraq's oil production is increasing and is one of the good news stories in iraq right now, they are producing around three million barrels a day for the first time really in nearly 30 years. iraq's own estimates, they want to get up to about ten million barrels a day by 2017. we don't think they'll meet that, probably may plateau at about five. but still, as the resources are being developed, there is a new sense that something has to be done with the consensus for how the resources can be managed and the profits and the revenues shared. it is one of the most central issues on the domestic political agenda. >> thank you, mr. chairman.

>> senator udall? >> go ahead. >> okay, thank you. you with senator risch discussed this whole issue of hydrocarbons. and it's been reported that iraq has the goal of doubling its oil output over the next three years. and i think in the long-term they want to reach a total of 12 million barrels per day, which is as you know, mr. mcgurk, would be pretty incredible in that region that would put them up there with saudi arabia. do you believe iraq is on track to achieve this goal? and what has helped iraq improve its successful increase of petroleum output over the last year, and in particular i'm interested in while we were there, there was lots of reports that the security wasn't good enough or oil companies from

around the world to move in and do the job and get the oil back online. but apparently now, i mean, they are going up dramatically. they're i think they're up past what it was from the invasion. and it looks like they're very aggressive. i know you're not an oil expert, but you're over there talking to them, and you've been over there a while do. have a sense of where they're headed on the -- on oil output? >> thank you, senator. we addressed this briefly in your office, and i'm fortunate for the chance to develop it further here. there were two key events in 2007 and 2009 that have really led to this major increase in oil. in 2007 during the surge period, we really convinced the iraqis that they have a sing isle point of failure and a national security problem in how their

oil is exported. they're really exported through the basr terminal called the abad. if you go out there, it's like the waterworld or mad max movie. it's very vulnerable, old and rusting. where that terminal to fail, iraq would not be able to export oil. about 80% goes through the south. 10 a plan was put in place, and general petraeus was part of this. ryan crocker was part of really urging the iraqis to do this with the oil minister at the time, sharistani. these are called single point moorings. foster wheeler had a big role in the engineering feat in actually pulling this off. the first single point mooring started delivering oil in february. and it immediately increased iraq's barrels of oil by 200 barrels a day. other moorings in the gulf are scheduled to open over the course of this year. it's a major engineering feat. there will be setbacks. but it could produce, increase iraq's oil, just the sing

8-point mooring by millions of barrels a day. the second piece were the bidding rounds in 2009, where iraq for the first time invited international companies in to bid for their fields. and it was a successful. it was very difficult because i used to hear from iraqis in '04, '05 that you really need to get international companies in here. there was a fear if they got companies to drill and helped the iraqis to produce their oil. it happened in 2009. they drove a very hard bargain. because of those contracts, there is now international companies, bp, exxonmobil, occidental, the chinese luke oil are helping drill and develop resources. so very quickly, where do we go from here in the iraqis still are not thinking in terms of a system in how to really get their oil going. sometimes they don't have the pumps in place, the right water

pressure to come in and get the water out of some of their older fields. and we have been working close where i the iraqis. ambassador jim jeffrey has raised this to the top of the priority and done an incredible job with it. through the joint coordinating committee we have very deep ties with the iraqis. they recently had their inaugural meet hearing in washington with carlos pascual. in showing how to in a systemized way develop their oil sources. a in of do-outs and we're now following up. we can talk to the iraqis about high level strategic issues and how we can cooperate, both whole of government and within our private industry. and getting our private industry harnessed and into iraq is going to be critical. and there is a gte gateway for doing that. >> thank you for that answer. thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator. senator lugar? >> mr. elliott, i would like to

pursue further just for our own knowledge what is occurring in tajikistan presently. how would you describe the relations of that country with russia, for example, or with china, or with other countries that may have strategic interests in that territory? >> thank you, mr. senator. that's a very good question. having been a former country of the soviet union and also sharing a border with china, tajikistan i believe shares very good relationships with those countries. but they also share good relationships with us, as i mentioned in my statement, we have good cooperation with them on the northern distribution network, and they are doing a lot to help their neighbors to the south, and also to help in fighting crime and narcotics. we believe that it's not a zero sum game in central asia, and

that the countries of central asia need to keep good relations with their neighbors and with russia. we've also had good cooperation. i've served in embassy moscow and our assistant secretary blake as part of our annual bilateral consultations. we have consulted in the region. so i would say that the situation is very good that tajikistan shares good relations with its neighbors and we look forward to continuing those strong relationships. and if confirmed, i will make that a priority. thank you. >> you have described in your opening statement civil war that occurred there, resolution of that, and the beginnings at least of a government that aspired apparently to democratic tendencies. but try to describe the evolution of that government. to what extent is there a sharing of power between the

executive and how active is the legislative -- how active are persons who are demanding human rights and the recognition of minorities and what have you. what is the lay of the land in terms of political progress there? >> that's also a very good question, and one that concerns us, because i think in the 20 years of its independence, we haven't perhaps seen the growth of civil society and the growth of democracy that we would have liked to have seen. this is something that the obama administration has engaged on. as i mentioned in my statement, secretary clinton visited tajikistan, and part of the reason she visited was to be able to engage with civil society, but also to engage with the government on the need for expanding human rights, expanding freedom of the press, expanding freedom of religion. there is one independent islamic

party that participates in the parliament in tajikistan. however, i would say that we need to do more to open civil society there and to improve the rights, human rights of the people of tajikistan. and again, if confirmed, this will be one of my top priorities. we do have national security interests there, but our interests in improving the rights of the human rights and the rights of the people of tajikistan are also extremely important. >> the reason i ask these questions in that order is that currently there are influences governmentally from china and from russia quite apart from historical problems in tajikistan. we have, as you have illustrated, our own ideas about what would be ideal for the people of the country and espouse those. and secretary clinton's visit is a good example, high profile.

i'm just curious in terms of the complexity, as we weigh in diplomatically with regard to our thoughts about their governance, at the same time hoping for support in afghanistan or elsewhere where they can be helpful. this requires diplomacy with really a high degree of tact, i suspect, and recognition of the crosscurrents historically as well as presently. has there been a trend would you say toward the human rights a speck and toward developments that we would find more compatible with our ideas of governance? >> well, as i mentioned, i don't think that the trends have been perhaps as extensive as we would have liked in the 20 years of tajikistan's independence. i think one thing we have to remember is they don't share the same history of democracy that

we do. they're a young country. and i believe that they're working toward improving the human rights situation there. they just recently passed a law that would get rid of the laws that would make criminalization of libel which would help journalist there's. we have seen some progress. some journalists who have been arrested have been released. but there is still a lot of work to be done. and i would say that russia does have interests in tajikistan. they have a military base there. their concern i think is for security and for stemming the flow of narcotics from afghanistan. so if confirmed, i think we'll continue to work on that and make it a priority. and to work with not only with tajikistan, but with the neighbors to make sure that we're all moving and helping them to move in the right direction. >> i thank you for your answers. and likewise for your experience in that area. thank you. >> thank you, senator lugar.

i'll go another round and others may as well. but i know we're coming to the end of our hearing. ms. elliott, i wanted to ask you about the northern distribution network, and i'll hold that in abeyance for just a moment to get to mr. mcgurk. special emigrant visas, basically, that if someone in iraq and a citizen of iraq has helped american forces in ways that put them at substantial risk, we expedite their visas pursuant to the special immigrant visa program. and as i said, these are individuals that live under threat today. i know that the process has been expedited and that the u.s. has admitted as many applicants in fiscal year 2012 as it did in all of 2011. so there is progress.

but there is still a backlog. and the question i have for you, i don't know if you have a number, but if you don't, if you could get it to us, the number of cases of special emigrant visas, how many of those are in the pipeline for the so-called principle applicants. and number two, how many cases are pending for applicants through the direct access visa process, if you can just tell us about that? >> thank you, senator. this issue is very important to me, and it's a very personal issue to me. i had the opportunity to discuss it in some depth with senator cardin when i visited him in his office. i have known iraqis in iraq who have worked with us and lost their lives. i've known iraqis who have gone into this program and never came out of it, they were never able to get a visa. and i have known iraqis who have resettled in the united states. it's very personal to me.

as you may know, we also have to have security checks to make sure that the american people are protected. that's also first and foremost. there was a substantial backlog, which as you said in your statement, it's absolutely right. we have now over the first half of this year admitted more siv cases into the u.s. than we did all of last year. and i have been told that the numbers for the third quarter look to be substantially higher. i think this year so far the numbers is about 850. senator, he will get you the exact figures on the number of cases that are being processed now and the backlog. since i saw senator cardin, i visited with samantha power at the national security council, the national security staff who has done a terrific job in streamlining the processing of these cases and making sure that we have the personnel and the right resources directed to process them effectively and efficiently. the embassy plays a key role in that. we have increased our staff there to make sure that these

cases can be processed from the initial point of entry at the embassy. and if i'm confirmed, i pledge to youly do everything i possibly can to make sure that these cases are processed efficiently with reasonable security checks to make sure that the american people are protected, but that iraqis who have worked with us who wish to come to our country feel welcomed, that they know where they stand in the process, and they know they're taken care of. i will do everything i possibly can to make this program effective. >> thank you very much. ms. elliott, i wanted to ask you about the northern distribution network. i guess in two levels, number one the importance of it is so apparent as we draw down in afghanistan to get supplies, equipment, and so much else through that network. i guess can you assess where we are as it relates to the role played by tajikistan, number one. and number two, how you upon confirmation will prioritize and focus on the importance of t the -- of their help for us in

the northern distribution network. >> well, thank you, mr. chairman. tajikistan has played a very important role in the northern distribution network, which as you rightfully mentioned has become extremely important in getting vital supplies to our troops in afghanistan. likewise, it will play an extremely important role in taking equipment out of afghanistan as we begin to lessen our military presence there. i have worked closely with the government of tajikistan on these issues. while tajikistan doesn't have a developed rail network like some of the other countries in central asia, they have been very supportive and played a vital role in the part of the northern distribution network that i would call the kkt route. it's kazakhstan/kyrgyzstan -- tajikistan. the capacity is not great

because we have to truck things through the mountains of tajikistan. however, we've had very good success rate with very low loss of cargo, no pilferage, and we have gotten a lot of cooperation from the government of tajikistan on that. and president rahman indicated to secretary clinton when she met with him that he wants to continue to support us in that area. because i think as the government of tajikistan and the people of tajikistan realize, in order to have a safe and prosperous tajikistan, we need to have a safe and stable and prosperous afghanistan. >> thank you very much. my time is up for this round unless senator udall, senator risch, senator lugar, anything? senator udall? >> i would ask just one final question here. since the invasion displaced saddam hussein's sunni governing structure, whatever you want to

call it there, one of the major issues has been this divisive conflict between sunni and shia. and we've seen it in terms of talk of the civil war and all the various bombings and suicide bombings that have gone on. what is your assessment of how the current government is moving to integrate sunnis into the government at all levels, whether it's high positions in the government or people that held kind of bureaucratic positions and weren't necessarily involved in all the atrocities and things. what is your assessment about how they're performing on the integration? >> thank you, senator. it's -- senator casey referenced a poll that shows there is still this vast gap in perceptions of

the government between shia and sunnis. among sunnis, according to this poll, it's increased in recent months but it's invisaed to only 30% of sunnis would see this government favorably. the current government has a lot of work to do in this area. we can track it through the percentages of military officers, the last order of battle i saw, sunni officers are about 13% overall. that's below the population figure. in this current round of political negotiation and debate, it's been very interesting because there has been a real shake-up in difference alliances. so moqtada al sadr, for example, who was seen as the face of the shia jamadi group is now aligning with a lot of sunnis in a sort of iraqi nationalist view

that is interesting. it's something to watch. the sons of iraq is also something that we need to watch very closely. so far about 70,000 have been incorporated into government positions. about 30,000 sons of iraq are still manning checkpoints. they're getting paid out of the current budget, i've been told out of the current budget. they get paid about $300 a month, which is slightly below the per capita gdp. but that needs to continue, because one of the indicators if you look at academic studies of precursors of renewed or re-ignited civil war is militant insurgent groups beginning to coalesce and reform. and i think making sure the sons of iraq are continued to take care of will be very important. so far the government has kept most of its promises on that, but we need to watch it. but the sunni/shia cleavages are extremely deep there is the overhang now of a very bitter sectarian war that the iraqis are still overcoming. we need to remind the current

government every day that they need to do what they can to make sunnis feel they are a full part of the process. >> thank you, chairman. >> thank you, senator udall. ambassador mcgurk, ms. elliott, thank you for your testimony and your prior service and your willingness to serve yet again in tough assignments. i want to make sure for the record that i say this, that we're going to keep the record open. i know i will have more questions and others will. keep the record open for 48 hours for questions. that's a short window. but i want to make sure that people knew that for members of the committee. but we're grateful for your preference here and for your testimony. and we're adjourned.

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