MP hopes to set up strategic partnership with Washington

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: MP from the United Iraqi Alliance Abbas al-Bayati on Wednesday expressed hope that the victory of Democratic Senator Barack Obama in the U.S. presidential elections will help establishing strategic partnership with Washington, urging the new administration to abide by its commitments with Iraq. “We in Iraq hope that Obama’s victory could lead to establishing a strategic partnership with Iraq,” Al-Bayati told IraqiNews.com. He called on the new U.S. administration to abide by what the former administration committed to, including defending Iraq and protecting the democratic experience in the country as well as protecting Iraq’s money in foreign banks. Barack Obama won the U.S. elections, defeating Republican John McCain to make history as the first black U.S. president. Obama will be sworn in as the 44th U.S. president on January 20, 2009 and will face a crush of immediate challenges, from tackling an economic crisis to ending the war in Iraq and trying to overhaul the U.S. health care system. the United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) has 82 seats out of the 275-seat parliament. SH (S) 1