Iraq’s National Coalition MP denies existence of relationship between activating Arbil Agreement – the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: A Legislature from Iraq ’s National Coalition, led by Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, has denied the existence of relationship between the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and the activation of the Arbil Agreement, calling to overcome the crisis among the political forces.   “The opinion of Iraq ’s Parliament Speaker, Usama al-Nujeify is important, but what is the relationship between the American withdrawal and the Arbil Agreement?,” Ahmed Habib asked, in a statement for IraqiNews.com news agency, saying that “the withdrawal is a special case and the Arbil Agreement is a matter related to the relationship among brothers and partners.”   Nujeify told IraqiNews.com news agency, in an interview in Brussels, where he is on a visit now, that he did not discuss the withdrawal of presence of the American troops, because that issue was related to a report that would be presented by the Iraqi Prime Minister, to uncover the readiness of the Iraqi troops, adding that the “issue would be postponed till the time of activation of Arbil Agreement.”   North Iraq’s Kurdistan President, Massoud Barzani, had issued his Arbil Agreement, being an initiative to settle the current crisis in Iraq in September last year, including the formation of an 8-12 member committee, representing the political parties, in order to carry out negotiations to settle their suspended differences and to discuss the formation of a government of national-partnership, along with the settlement of the issue of the Three Iraqi Presidencies.   “I don’t understand the reason that pushed Nujeify to link the issue of the American withdrawal from Iraq with the Arbil Agreement?,” Habib asked.   The Agreement, signed between Baghdad and Washington in 2008, had included an article on the withdrawal of the U.S. troops from Iraq by the end of December next.   SKH (FT)   724