Reply #3: Actually, prior to the vacation of the Iraqi parliament [View All]

[merh]

there was an effort to unify the political powers that had gained the majority support of the members in the parliament. The nationalists had gained the majority and were rejecting the US/GB oil law and the efforts to divide Iraq. Maliki, the PM, was siding with the US, but he may well now realize, he has to do what his nation wants and not what the US wants.

Parliament may have been on vacation but that doesn't mean that they have been by the seaside sunning, they probably have continued their efforts on behalf of Iraq to find solutions and resolutions.

Maybe this admin has been negative about Maliki and the Iraqi government's efforts only because the Iraqis have been doing what they are supposed to do. Maybe they have been governing and trying to do what is best for the Iraqi people and ignoring the US wants and needs. The oil law has been the big hold up for most members of the parliament, they don't want to give away their nation's profits.

Graham could be right and the "divide" that this admin says exists, the failures that they claim exist are just created by this admin to try to out Maliki who may well have decided the nationalists are correct and the US be damned. Who knows.

By "separatists," we mean groups who oppose a unified Iraq with a strong central government; key figures like Maliki of the Dawa party, Shia leader Abdul Aziz Al-Hakeem of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq ("SCIRI"), Vice President Tariq Al-Hashimi of the Sunni Islamic Party, President Jalal Talabani -- a Kurd -- and Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish Autonomous Region, favor partitioning Iraq into three autonomous regions with strong local governments and a weak central administration in Baghdad. (The partition plan is also favored by several congressional Democrats, notably Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware.)

Iraq's separatists also oppose setting a timetable for ending the U.S. occupation, preferring the addition of more American troops to secure their regime. They favor privatizing Iraq's oil and gas and decentralizing petroleum operations and revenue distribution.
http://www.alternet.org/story/51624/

The parliament today passed a binding resolution that will guarantee lawmakers an opportunity to block the extension of the U.N. mandate under which coalition troops now remain in Iraq when it comes up for renewal in December. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, whose cabinet is dominated by Iraqi separatists, may veto the measure.

The law requires the parliament's approval of any future extensions of the mandate, which have previously been made by Iraq's prime minister. It is an enormous development; lawmakers reached in Baghdad today said that they do in fact plan on blocking the extension of the coalition's mandate when it comes up for renewal six months from now.
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/53230/