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US Role Complicating Situation in Iraq – Al-Iraqiya List Member | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Baghdad, Asharq Al-Awsat- A leading figure in the Iraqi National Alliance [INA], which is led by Ammar al-Hakim, has denied accusations levied at the Al-Iraqiya List that it was seeking “to fragment” the National Alliance between the INA and State of Law Coalition [SLC].

Haydar al-Suwaydi told Asharq Al-Awsat that statements to this effect by Hadi al-Amiri, leader of the Badr Organization, “might express a viewpoint and belief built on the basis that (Al-Iraqiya) had a dialogue with the SLC, one of the National Alliance’s components, but did not have a dialogue with the National Alliance’s components as a whole.” He added however that “Al-Iraqiya did not start the dialogue with the SLC but it was the latter which deviated from the agreement when it went to talk to Al-Iraqiya on its behalf and not on the National Alliance’s behalf.” Al-Amiri had accused Al-Iraqiya List of seeking to fragment the INA and SLC alliance saying “Al-Iraqiya is holding separate dialogues with the National Alliance’s parties with the aim of fragmenting it.”

Al-Suwaydi went on to say that “Al-Iraqiya was clear in its stands from the meetings held with it and we did not sense any change in them about forming a government of national partnership in which all participate without marginalizing any of the parties.”

On his part, Jamal al-Battikh, an Al-Iraqiya List member, expressed surprise at Al-Amiri’s statements and asked “does not Al-Amiri know that (Al-Iraqiya) is an independent list which talks to whoever it wants, whether it is the SLC or INA?” He asserted to Asharq Al-Awsat that “there are no conditions that Al-Iraqiya must comply with in the matter of its dialogues with the other blocs”, adding that “the INA wants (Al-Iraqiya) to cut its dialogues with the SLC so that they can open serious negotiations with Al-Iraqiya.”

Al-Battikh criticized the US role and said “the United States is the origin of the disease afflicting Iraq, especially as it has helped complicate the situation”, adding that “it wants a candidate acceptable to Iran and a friend to it and this is what it is working for behind the scenes.”

In other news, Firyad Rawanduzi, member of the Kurdish Alliance, said the coalition of the Kurdish blocs has moved from the stage of dialogues with the political parties in Baghdad to the stage of negotiations. He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the Kurdish blocs “now have a negotiating proposal made up of 16 points which was presented to Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi and Al-Iraqiya List leader Iyad Allawi and was previously presented to Islamic Supreme Council leader Ammar al-Hakim.” He added that the Kurdish delegation was due to present the proposal to Al-Maliki late yesterday.

Regarding the moves of the delegation, which was reportedly waiting for the political parties to agree on the prime minister’s candidate before starting the dialogue with them, Rawanduzi said “all the Kurdish blocs want the issue resolved by not keeping the difficult problem of forming the government without a solution.” He stressed that “we will ally ourselves with anyone who accepts the negotiations proposal and agree with us on it, particularly in the issue of national constants and the relationship between Baghdad and Arbil. Other than that, we will not ally ourselves with any party that rejects this paper which is the final decision of the Kurdish blocs’ coalition.”

Asked what the proposal document offered Al-Maliki during his recent visit to Arbil, Rawanduzi stressed that “the broad outlines of the paper were probably presented to him” and pointed out that “Al-Maliki was open to the paper and stressed he would discuss it by forming a negotiating team to discuss its clauses with the Kurdish delegation visiting Baghdad for that purpose.”