Iraqi MP: No SOFA without sovereignty

Wed, 17 Sep 2008 09:40:23 GMT
A member of the Iraqi parliament has warned no security pact will be signed between Iraq and the US if Baghdad's conditions are not met.  "An agreement on the security pact with the US will only be possible if Washington guarantees Iraq's independence and sovereignty over its airspace, soil, and waters, and sets a clear timetable for the withdrawal of multi-national forces from Iraq," Sheikh Hamid Rashid Maala said in an interview with the Alforat TV channel.

The Bush administration is currently trying to pressure Baghdad into accepting a US-Iraqi security deal which will serve to prolong its military presence in the country after the UN Mandate expires on December 31.   Baghdad and Washington disagree on several key points of the Status of Forces Agreements (SOFA), however, which make the signing of the deal seem unlikely.  The differences revolve around issues such as immunity from prosecution for US soldiers and contractors, the status of Iraqi prisoners in US detention centers, and a deadline for the withdrawal of US forces from the country.   Maala's comments follow remarks by a member of the Iraqi parliament's Security and Defense Commission, Abbas Hasan al-Bayati, who pointed out the immunity SOFA would give to US forces as the main cause of the current deadlock in US-Iraqi negotations.  MJ/JG/BGH. Original source at PressTV