Talabani says saw eye to eye with Maliki on political reform

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said on Thursday that he agreed with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to activate political reform and enhance national entente. Talabani gave the statements during a meeting at Baghdad’s al-Salam Palace today (Feb. 19) with the Commander of U.S. forces in Iraq General Raymond Odierno, according to a presidential press release received by IraqiNews.com news agency. Talabani reviewed the outcome of his meeting with the Iraqi premier and that they converged on the need to implement previous agreements among political blocs and activate the political reform paper to enhance national reconciliation. The paper, approved by the Iraqi parliament on November 27, 2008, is a document that political blocs like the Iraqi Accord Front (IAF) and National Dialogue Front (NDF) called for endorsing by parliament as a condition to pass the status of forces agreement (SOFA) on the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq. SOFA had been signed by the Iraqi government and the United States late last year. Talabani and Odierno agreed to “enhance relations between Iraq and the United States in a way that would guarantee the two friendly peoples’ aspirations for progress”. AmR (P) 1