October 28, 2010
Kurds push for end to Iraq impasse
A Kurdish alliance that has taken on the role of kingmaker in Iraq’s political crisis is pushing for a meeting of rival Iraqi leaders in a bid to solve an eight-month impasse.
Barham Salih, a senior Kurdish official, said Nouri al-Maliki, incumbent prime minister, had come very close to agreeing to almost all their terms as he battles to retain his post.
But Mr Salih, prime minister of the Kurdish regional government, told FT that the Kurds, who have nearly 60 seats in the 325-member assembly, were making clear to all parties that the next government should be inclusive and have credible Sunni Arab representation.
Mr Maliki’s State of Law coalition, which is predominantly Shia, has already agreed to an alliance with the radical Shia, and anti-US, Sadrist movement. If Mr Maliki was to secure the support of the Kurds, he would have a majority in the parliament.
However, the picture has been complicated by the refusal of Iraqiya, a secular list led by Iyad Allawi, Mr Maliki’s arch rival, to join any administration headed by the prime minister. Iraqiya was backed by Sunni Arabs and its exclusion from government has raised concerns about possible sectarian violence.
Iraqiya won two more seats than State of Law in the March 7 elections.
The Kurds are also talking to Iraqiya, which is seeking to form the government in an alliance with other Shia parties. Mr Salih said Mr Allawi has recently been more positive about meeting the Kurds’ terms.
In what could represent an important step forward, Kurdish leaders convened a meeting on Wednesday and are preparing for a leadership summit to discuss a power-sharing government.
“We have been very much mindful of remaining in the centre of these things and not moving one way or the other. At the end of the day, it not just about who will meet our demands,” Mr Salih said. “We believe we have now done a lot of homework, and believe we have a framework in place to say this is how a government should function.”
Barham Salih: says issue of Sunni Arab representation is crucial to finding agreement
The Kurdish terms are believed to include devolution of the prime minister’s powers, adopting a much-delayed hydrocarbons law and resolving the dispute over the future of Kirkuk, the oil-rich city that Kurds want in their semi-autonomous northern region.
The battle to form the next government has been exacerbated by concerns among Iraqi politicians that whoever takes the post may refuse to give up power in future, particularly as the US prepares for a complete military withdrawal by the end of next year.
“Our history in Iraq tells us that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and there are concerns that, as the Americans redeploy, some might get the temptation to hijack the country and revert back to the way we were before 2003,” said Mr Salih.
He said Iraqi security forces must be reformed to ensure they are seen as a national force representing all communities. Many Iraqis are wary of the forces and their political links.
The leak of nearly 400,000 war logs by WikiLeaks last week detailed a litany of abuses by Iraqi forces.
Mr Salih said he was not justifying any abuses but argued that a country that has been plagued by terrorism and power struggles was still learning about the value of human rights.
He echoed other officials’ concerns that the country’s security forces were not capable of securing their own borders and protecting Iraqi sovereignty from “regional predators”, therefore requiring a “sustained engagement of the US to help develop capabilities”.
Iraq, he added, was seen as crucial to the regional balance of power and neighbouring countries were all trying to have their say in the formation of the next government.
“Everyone has a dog in this fight – that makes our lives very complicated and it makes the task of a new government not an exclusively Iraqi affair,” he said.
http://www.iii.co.uk/investment/detail/?display=discussion&code=cotn%3AGKP.L&it=le&action=detail&id=7157307
Kurds push for end to Iraq impasse
A Kurdish alliance that has taken on the role of kingmaker in Iraq’s political crisis is pushing for a meeting of rival Iraqi leaders in a bid to solve an eight-month impasse.
Barham Salih, a senior Kurdish official, said Nouri al-Maliki, incumbent prime minister, had come very close to agreeing to almost all their terms as he battles to retain his post.
But Mr Salih, prime minister of the Kurdish regional government, told FT that the Kurds, who have nearly 60 seats in the 325-member assembly, were making clear to all parties that the next government should be inclusive and have credible Sunni Arab representation.
Mr Maliki’s State of Law coalition, which is predominantly Shia, has already agreed to an alliance with the radical Shia, and anti-US, Sadrist movement. If Mr Maliki was to secure the support of the Kurds, he would have a majority in the parliament.
However, the picture has been complicated by the refusal of Iraqiya, a secular list led by Iyad Allawi, Mr Maliki’s arch rival, to join any administration headed by the prime minister. Iraqiya was backed by Sunni Arabs and its exclusion from government has raised concerns about possible sectarian violence.
Iraqiya won two more seats than State of Law in the March 7 elections.
The Kurds are also talking to Iraqiya, which is seeking to form the government in an alliance with other Shia parties. Mr Salih said Mr Allawi has recently been more positive about meeting the Kurds’ terms.
In what could represent an important step forward, Kurdish leaders convened a meeting on Wednesday and are preparing for a leadership summit to discuss a power-sharing government.
“We have been very much mindful of remaining in the centre of these things and not moving one way or the other. At the end of the day, it not just about who will meet our demands,” Mr Salih said. “We believe we have now done a lot of homework, and believe we have a framework in place to say this is how a government should function.”
Barham Salih: says issue of Sunni Arab representation is crucial to finding agreement
The Kurdish terms are believed to include devolution of the prime minister’s powers, adopting a much-delayed hydrocarbons law and resolving the dispute over the future of Kirkuk, the oil-rich city that Kurds want in their semi-autonomous northern region.
The battle to form the next government has been exacerbated by concerns among Iraqi politicians that whoever takes the post may refuse to give up power in future, particularly as the US prepares for a complete military withdrawal by the end of next year.
“Our history in Iraq tells us that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and there are concerns that, as the Americans redeploy, some might get the temptation to hijack the country and revert back to the way we were before 2003,” said Mr Salih.
He said Iraqi security forces must be reformed to ensure they are seen as a national force representing all communities. Many Iraqis are wary of the forces and their political links.
The leak of nearly 400,000 war logs by WikiLeaks last week detailed a litany of abuses by Iraqi forces.
Mr Salih said he was not justifying any abuses but argued that a country that has been plagued by terrorism and power struggles was still learning about the value of human rights.
He echoed other officials’ concerns that the country’s security forces were not capable of securing their own borders and protecting Iraqi sovereignty from “regional predators”, therefore requiring a “sustained engagement of the US to help develop capabilities”.
Iraq, he added, was seen as crucial to the regional balance of power and neighbouring countries were all trying to have their say in the formation of the next government.
“Everyone has a dog in this fight – that makes our lives very complicated and it makes the task of a new government not an exclusively Iraqi affair,” he said.
http://www.iii.co.uk/investment/detail/?display=discussion&code=cotn%3AGKP.L&it=le&action=detail&id=7157307
