MP urges MNF troop extension

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: An Iraqi parliamentarian from the Kurdistan Islamic Union (KIU) on Tuesday called on the Iraqi government to extend the UN mandate of the U.S.-led multinational forces in Iraq. “I urge the government to work on convincing UN Security Council members to extend the presence of coalition forces in Iraq, because it is unlikely to have the security agreement between Baghdad and Washington signed within the coming three months,” Sami al-Atroushi told IraqiNews.com. Negotiations are currently underway between the Iraqi and U.S. government over a long-term security agreement that is expected to regulate the presence of U.S. troops when a UN mandate expires at the end of 2008. A declaration of principles was signed between U.S. President George W. Bush and the Iraqi premier in December 2007. The declaration was scheduled to be ratified on July 31, 2008 and to come into force as of January 1, 2009. The agreement governs the presence of U.S. forces in the country after 2008 and will not come into force without the approval of the Iraqi Parliament, which has 275 members from five blocs, in addition to the Sadrist movement and al-Fadhila party. The U.S. troops’ presence currently relies on a mandate by the United Nations and is annually renewed at the request of the Iraqi government. SS (S) 1