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BAGHDAD, Iraq
(AP) - Kurdish political chiefs led by President
Jalal Talabani warned Shiite leaders Tuesday that a
deal on the oil-rich northern city of Kirkuk would
be their key demand in talks on forming the
country's next government.
Kurdish, Shiite and Sunni Arab leaders met in the
most intensive discussions over the next government
since Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari narrowly won
a ballot last week to be the dominant Shiite
alliance's candidate to retain the premiership.
Talabani also met with al-Jaafari's coalition ally,
top Shiite political leader Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim,
whose candidate to be the next premier, Vice
President Adil Abdul-Mahdi, lost by one vote to al-Jaafari.
Talabani said his Kurdish coalition's key demand in
the government talks concerned Kirkuk, particularly
implementation of the constitution's Article 136,
which calls for a census to be held there followed
by a referendum on whether it should be part of the
Kurdish self-ruled Kurdistan region.
"The Kurdish Coalition has no demands except those
which are known by everyone regarding the need to
implement Article 136 of the constitution ...
considering Kirkuk," a statement released by
Talabani's office said.
Prominent Kurdish politician Mahmoud Othman said the
constitution's Kirkuk clause is "nonnegotiable."
However, Arabs and Turkomen oppose the Kurds taking
sole control of Kirkuk, the center of Iraq's vast
northern oil fields. Control of Kirkuk is among the
most intractable issues facing Iraq because of the
conflicting ethnic claims.
Al-Jaafari, meanwhile, vowed Tuesday to work in
"accordance with the constitution" and maintain his
"good, long and deep relations with the Kurds,"
particularly Talabani. The two have often been at
odds over various issues.
Kurds complain that al-Jaafari's outgoing government
failed to honor promises about the status of Kirkuk.
Saddam Hussein deported tens of thousands of Kurds
from the Kirkuk area and replaced them by Iraqi
Arabs.
Talabani also said he wants the next government to
include the Iraqi National List of former premier
Ayad Allawi, who has close ties with the United
States and has been touted as a possible interior
minister.
Sunni Arabs oppose hard-line Shiites like current
minister Bayan Jabr claiming the Interior Ministry
amid accusations Shiite-led security forces have
been killing and kidnapping Sunnis in a wave of
sectarian violence.
But some Shiite leaders, including allies of radical
cleric and al-Jaafari ally Muqtada al-Sadr, also
oppose Allawi taking a senior government post,
seeing it as a "red line" issue. Al-Sadr supporters
reject Allawi because he directed Iraqi security
forces in campaigns against al-Sadr militiamen in
Najaf and eastern Baghdad in 2004 and early 2005.
But in his talks with Talabani, al-Hakim said there
were no "red lines" on any bloc taking part in the
government, a reference to Allawi's group.
The U.S. wants Iraq's various political groups to
form a national unity government that gives key
positions to Sunni Arabs, who form the backbone of
the raging insurgency. Sunni satisfaction with the
political process is seen as a way to end the
violence.
Much of the battle over the new government will come
down to numbers. Talabani's coalition has tapped him
to take the presidency again, but he needs
two-thirds of the 275-seat parliament to support his
nomination.
Al-Jaafari's alliance holds 130 seats, not enough to
form a government on its own. The Kurds, Allawi's
list and a Sunni Arab bloc hold a total of 133
seats. Any government will be approved only after
intense bartering.
Under the constitution, the new president calls on
the largest bloc's candidate for prime minister _
that being al-Jaafari _ to form a Cabinet, which
requires a simple majority of the assembly to be
approved.
The U.N. Security Council on Tuesday welcomed the
final results of the Iraqi election and called on
political leaders to form "a fully inclusive
government" that will strive to build a democratic
and united country.
The council condemned acts of terrorism in Iraq and
urged those who continue to use violence "to lay
down their arms." It said terrorist acts "should not
be allowed to disrupt Iraq's political and economic
progress."
AP
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