London, Asharq Al-Awsat – Iraqi Kurdistan Region representative to Baghdad, Mohammed Ihsan, informed Asharq Al-Awsat that “the National Alliance’s response to the Erbil meeting’s message to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki…did not contain anything new or put forward any solutions.” Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani, Iraqiya bloc leader Iyad Allawi, Sadrist bloc leader Moqtada al-Sadr and Iraqi Parliamentary speaker Osama al-Nujaifi had met in Erbil two weeks ago to discuss the political crisis in Iraq, threatening al-Maliki with a vote of no confidence if he continues to refuse to implement the Erbil Agreement which brought him to power.
Ihsan added “the response sent by the National Alliance – with the exception of the Sadrist bloc – at the end of the 15-day deadline…carried the language and style of the State of Law coalition, not all parties of the National Alliance.”
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat from Erbil, the Kurdistan Region representative to Baghdad stressed that “the response called for a meeting to find a mechanism to solve the political problems, and this is the State of Law coalition’s way of procrastinating and circumventing these problems” adding “I have not heard or felt any seriousness on the part of al-Maliki to implement the 9 points that were included in the Erbil meeting’s message regarding national partnership and implementing the Erbil agreement.” Ihsan asserted that “I believe this response is nothing more than procrastination, and does not include any solutions to the suffocating political crisis in Iraq.”
Regarding the tension between Baghdad and Erbil, which can be seen in some of the statements issued to the media, Ihsan stressed that “Regardless of these media campaigns and how some members of the State of Law coalition or al-Maliki have attacked the Kurdish leadership, in the end we must sit down at the dialogue table and find a solution to this intractable problem” adding “it will be better to do this today than tomorrow, for the longer this takes the more complicated the problems become.”
Commenting on the State of Law coalition’s threat to take clear and bold stance regarding “accusations and slander” made by the Kurdistan Region presidency towards al-Maliki, Ihsan said “this demonstrates the political and social hypocrisy of some Iraqi politicians.”
In a statement issued yesterday, State of Law coalition MP Abd-al-Salam al-Maliki said “the accusations and defamation against Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in the media by the presidency of the Kurdistan Region will not pass unnoticed, and we will take a clear and bold stance on this.”
He added “the failure of the conspiracy led by Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani against the government has led him to threaten to reveal alleged secret documents.” The State of Law coalition MP called on Erbil to “either reveal these documents in a legal manner via the competent authorities or officially apologize to al-Maliki.” The secret documents that the Kurdistan Regional government claims to be in possession of pertain to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s agreement with the Kurdistan Region and allegedly reveal how al-Maliki has gone back on his word.
For his part, Kurdistan Region representative to Baghdad, Mohammed Ihsan, told Asharq Al-Awsat “unfortunately, some politicians come out to stand in front of the microphone and think they can say whatever they like without reference to reality.” He confirmed that the Kurdistan Region is in possession of documents relating to al-Maliki’s position towards the Erbil Agreement, and others, adding that he believes that the time has come for these documents to be published in order to allow the Iraqi people to see the true nature of their leaders, who have failed to adhere to their pledges.
Ihsan also warned that “the behavior of the State of Law coalition will only hurt the National Alliance and Iraqi’s Shiite community, and this is why we are calling our brothers in the National Alliance to shoulder their responsibilities and put an end to the attacks being made by some members of the State of Law coalitions towards Kurdistan Region President Massoud Barzani.”
He added “we would hope that those who live in glass houses would refrain from throwing stones, and that the language of reason is utilized rather than the attacks that have been issued by some…we know that there are some figures within the National Alliance who want to calm the situation and resolve our problems.”
The Kurdistan Region representative to Baghdad also informed Asharq Al-Awsat that “the controversial points raised by President Barzani with Baghdad relate to the infrastructure of the Iraqi state, and there is no personal problem between him and al-Maliki, however unfortunately the Iraqi prime minister [al-Maliki] has complicated matters and the issue has reached attacks being made against the Kurdistan Region president” adding “many members of the State of Law coalition have revealed their true natures in a very cheap manner.”
Ihsan also commented on al-Maliki’s recent television statement, in which the Iraqi prime minister claimed to be more concerned about the Kurdish people than the Kurdish leaders themselves, saying “this reminds us exactly of what Saddam Hussein would say, namely that he was the most concerned about the dear Kurdish people, however everybody knows – particularly the Kurds – that nobody is concerned about the Kurdish people, except their own leaders who have made sacrifices to achieve what has been achieved for the Kurdish people today.”