Region | Iraq
US and Iran favour Maliki as Iraq PM six months after polls
There have been 56 national elections or referendums worldwide since Iraqis voted in the parliamentary poll on March 7
- AFP
- Published: 16:08 September 8, 2010
- Image Credit: AP
- Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki has the backing of Washington and US arch-foe Iran to keep his job.
Baghdad: Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki has the backing of Washington and US arch-foe Iran to keep his job, six months after he narrowly lost an election to ex-premier Iyad Allawi, politicians have said.
The United States has consistently denied having any favoured candidate for the premiership but amid growing impatience for a new government in Baghdad it now sees Maliki as the conflict-wracked country's only viable leader.
A grave fear that Allawi will "re-Baathify" Iraq, bringing former allies of Saddam Hussain back to power, has also led its Shiite parties, with close ties to Iran, to accept Maliki, despite scepticism about his character and ability.
Maliki's State of Law Alliance, a Shiite grouping, gained two fewer seats in the election than Iraqiya, a broadly secular coalition with strong Sunni backing led by Allawi, a Shiite.
But neither man has managed to gain a working parliamentary majority despite months of coalition negotiations, leaving the nation's politics in limbo amid growing public frustration at the lack of progress.
There have been 56 national elections or referendums worldwide, according to IFES (the International Foundation for Electoral Systems), since Iraqis voted in the parliamentary poll on March 7.
The impasse has led US officials, anxious to avoid further delays that could potentially cause Iraq's fledgling democracy to unravel, to seek a Maliki-led government that gives a prominent role to Allawi.
A senior State of Law official said Maliki received assurances during US Vice President Joe Biden's recent visit that major neighbouring Arab countries, except Saudi Arabia, had decided to stop backing Allawi's premiership hopes.
Who do you think is responsible for the impasse? What do you think is a possible solution?
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