No Permanent Bases Deal? A Withdrawal Timetable? Is The World Making Sense For A Change?
Nouri al-Maliki sent hints that he actually wants a timetable for U.S. withdrawal from Iraq. I was... skeptical. Now the permanent national-security adviser,
Jul 31, 2020644.7K Shares9.6M Views
Nouri al-Maliki sent hints that he actually wants a timetable for U.S. withdrawal from Iraq. I was… skeptical. Now the permanent national-security adviser, Mowaffaq al-Rubaie (has anyone else noticed he’s been in his position *for the last three premiers? *Who’s paying his salary, huh?), says something definitive:
“„“There should not be any permanent bases in Iraq unless these bases are under Iraqi control,” Rubaie said. “We would not accept any memorandum of understanding with [the U.S.] side that has no obvious and specific dates for the foreign troops’ withdrawal from Iraq.”
What in the world? Could this actually be the end of the permanent-occupation deal? Who put something in my drink?
I don’t know. We’ll see. Stuff like this has a tendency to get walked back. But The Washington Post reports that Rubaie, a Shiite, issued his comment after meeting with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the highest Shiite religious authority in Iraq. And according to this Iranian news story, Sistani has had it up to here with Maliki’s flirtations with a permanent occupation:
The usual caveats apply about the veracity of Iranian news organizations, but at least this makes sense.
Paolo Reyna
Reviewer
Paolo Reyna is a writer and storyteller with a wide range of interests. He graduated from New York University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Media Studies.
Paolo enjoys writing about celebrity culture, gaming, visual arts, and events. He has a keen eye for trends in popular culture and an enthusiasm for exploring new ideas. Paolo's writing aims to inform and entertain while providing fresh perspectives on the topics that interest him most.
In his free time, he loves to travel, watch films, read books, and socialize with friends.
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