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June 13th,
2008 - Maliki Says Talks on Iraq-US Security Pact Deadlocked News article by Agence France
Presse |
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Maliki Says Talks on Iraq-US
Security Pact Deadlocked By Agence France Presse June 13, 2008 Amman - Iraqi Prime Minister
Nuri al-Maliki said Friday that negotiations with the United States on a
long-term security pact are deadlocked because of concern the deal infringes
Iraqi sovereignty. "We have reached an
impasse because when we opened these negotiations we did not realise that the
US demands would so deeply affect Iraqi sovereignty and this is something we
can never accept," he said in Amman. "We cannot allow US
forces to have the right to jail Iraqis or assume, alone, the responsibility
of fighting against terrorism," Maliki told Jordanian newspaper editors,
according to a journalist present at the meeting. The White House, meanwhile,
vowed to pursue the talks while respecting Iraq's sovereignty. "We are not sure of the
exact words he (Maliki) used, we intend to continue to work with the Iraqis
on the negotiations," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said. "We fully respect their
sovereignty - it is, after all, what we fought for in the liberation,"
she said, referring to the March 2003 US-led invasion to topple Saddam
Hussein. Criticism has been rife in
Iraq and in neighbouring Iran over the deal to cover the foreign military
presence in Iraq when a UN mandate expires at the end of this year. US President George W. Bush
and Maliki agreed in principle last November to sign a Status of Forces
Agreement (SOFA) by the end of July. Maliki told Iraqi community
leaders in Jordan that the talks were not over. "These negotiations
will continue until we find common ground that is acceptable for the Iraqi
side and the other party," he said, adding that both sides were looking
at "new ideas." "The life of a nation,
its future and its higher interests are at stake. And as long as there is no
national consensus it will not happen," he said. "If parliament
does not ratify it, it will not be." One of the staunchest
opponents of US military presence in Iraq, radical Shiite cleric Moqtada
al-Sadr said in a statement on Friday he plans to form a new armed group to
fight American forces. Bush has acknowledged rifts
with Baghdad. "I think we'll end up with a strategic agreement with
Iraq. There's all kinds of noise in their system and our system," he
said on Wednesday. In February, Bush said the
United States would seek a military presence in Iraq for "years"
but pledged it would not establish permanent bases. His administration has said
any deal would be similar to more than 80 such pacts which Washington has
with other nations, governing the scope of US operations and providing
protection for its soldiers. It says the pact will not
specify troop levels, establish permanent bases in Iraq or tie the next
president's hands. Iraqi lawmaker Mahmud Othman
said on Friday that Washington appeared to be flexible but there were some
sticking points, especially the immunity being offered to American soldiers
and private security guards. "Americans are open to
lift the immunity as far as the foreign security contractors are concerned
but not for their soldiers," said Othman, a Kurd. The immunity issue has been
hotly debated since the killing of 17 Iraqis by guards from the US Blackwater
security company in Baghdad last year. Othman said the Iraqis also
wanted the United States to offer long-term protection to Iraq from any
"foreign invasion", adding that the demand was a concern for
Washington's arch-foe Tehran. More than five years after
the invasion, around 150,000 US troops are still posted in the war-torn
country after Bush ordered a "surge" of five extra brigades to
combat escalating violence. These brigades are now being
withdrawn, with the final due home in July but the number of soldiers still
in Iraq remains above the pre-surge level of close to 130,000. Copyright © 2008 AFP. External link: http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5j17vEEGleCp2vpTLsiPLpfpWdaZg |