NCSS close to MoU with State of Law

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: A dialogue Committee, comprised of al-Iraqiya Bloc, led by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, and the State of Law Alliance, led by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, have laid down a memo-of-understanding (MoU) related to the establishment of the National Council for Strategic Studies (NCSS), proposed by Iyad Allawi, al-Iraqiya’s Legislature, Jamal al-Battikh said on Tuesday. “A dialogue committee, comprised of al-Iraqiya and State of Law Alliance, have laid down a draft-law for the National Council for Strategic Studies (NCSS), reflecting a close understanding between both sides,” Battikh told IraqiNews.com news Agency, noting that the draft-law was supposed to be presented to the Iraqi Parliament on Tuesday, but was delayed till next Saturday. Al-Iraqiya Bloc had presented a draft-law for the NCSS that faced strong opposition by the State of Law, led by Prime Minister Maliki, and the draft-law had proposed that the new Council would lay down the main political strategies of the State of Iraq, in all political, economic and security fields. The draft-law grants the NCSS‘s Chairman, scheduled to be occupied by Iyad Allawi, with “the rights and authorities of the prime minister, including the appointment of the Council’s Acting Chairman, in the event of the Chairman’s absence for any reason, along with inviting any leading official to attend its meetings, including the Chairmen of the Legislative Council, the Federal Court, the cabinet ministers and Army Commanders. Battikh, meanwhile said that the issue of assigning the new cabinet ministers was not yet settled, whilst the assignment of vice-presidents, deputy prime-ministers and other cabinet ministers remains, pending an agreement among leading political blocs, based on the number of their seats in the new 325-member Iraqi Parliament. SKH/SR 1