Zebari: US, Iranian stances toward Maliki represent “consensus,” not agreement

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari said that U.S. and Iranian stances that agree to have Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in office for a second term represent “consensus,” not agreement. “Regional, international, and some Iraqi sides (that he did not name) are affecting and hindering the process of forming the new Iraqi government,” Zebari told al-Hurra TV from the U.S. on Thursday (Sept. 23). He called on Iraqi political blocs to make concessions to form the new government, describing the current situation in Iraq as “dangerous.” Iraqi leaders have been unable to agree on candidates for prime minister, president and speaker of parliament since elections March 7. The Iraqiya slate of former interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi won a two-seat victory in the March contest but fell well short of the 163-seat majority needed to form a government alone. A myriad of names have surfaced to challenge Maliki, who is trying to secure a second term as prime minister. MH (P)/SH 1