Maliki offers to facilitate nuke talks between US and Iran

[Doctor Smith]

The only positive thing I can say? At least Kerry isn't slipping Maliki the tongue. KIssing him on the lips.  

[ezrapound]

The only positive thing I can say? At least Kerry isn't slipping Maliki the tongue. KIssing him on the lips.  

Oh God...I think I just threw up in my mouth at the thought of that visual...

[onerighthand]

Yep! I agree

 

one of keeping at arms length and under control to me. Stand here!

 

[uncirculd]

I think we have Sunnis on this forum who post here.

 

Or Al-Qaeda.  I hope not Al-Qaeda.

 

Only Sunnis or Al-Qaeda would be so against a Shia in leadership.

i never heard any one proclaim either one... as for shia leadership....i think hakim or even sadr would have done a better job

at protecting the citizens and they would have their services they so deserve...oh and the best one for the job is actually Allawi, the won who beat out maliki and gave his position to maliki in good faith...Allawi is a Shia...

[Butifldrm]

I know I'm bringing up a past topic, but I was just reading the State Department Briefings on Iraq and not one from today back until the 26th July.  You would think with all the violence and the impending collapse of the Government our State Department would be talking about it!  So here goes a post in this forum because the last State Department brief on Iraq surmounted to this:   I found it very interesting concerning the what's going on between Iraq and Iran.

 

QUESTION: Can you confirm, or have you seen the reports that Iran has expressed the desire for direct talks with the U.S. regarding its nuclear program? And if so, what kind of role will Iraq play in that, if any?

MS. PSAKI: Well, we’ve seen reports. Of course, Iraq is a partner of the United States, and we’re in regular conversations with Iraqi officials about a full range of issues of mutual interest, including Iran. As we’ve said many times, we’re open to direct talks with Iran in order to resolve the international community’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. And we work through, as you all know, the P-5+1 and Under Secretary Sherman just had a meeting, I believe a couple of weeks ago, with her counterparts. But it is – the ball is in Iran’s court to take the necessary steps to abide by their international obligations. And that has not changed.

QUESTION: Do you know --

QUESTION: What about --

QUESTION: Do you know if Prime Minister Maliki has offered himself up, or offered his services as an intermediary?

MS. PSAKI: I don’t have anything on that for you.

QUESTION: So you don’t know it’s that’s the case.

MS. PSAKI: I just don’t have anything on it for you. I don’t have any more information on that.

QUESTION: So, the – you’re saying --

MS. PSAKI: It would also be – I would point you to the Government of Iraq and Iran on that specific –

QUESTION: Did you ask people in this building if that was the case?

MS. PSAKI: Of course we discuss these issues frequently. I don’t have anything more to tell you.

QUESTION: And they wouldn’t – and so they wouldn’t answer you. You got no answer?

MS. PSAKI: That – Matt – (Laughter.)

QUESTION: I’m sorry, I don’t understand. The whole point of the story that she was caught talking, that the question is based on --

MS. PSAKI: Mm-hmm.

QUESTION: -- is that according to notes taken from a meeting with the U.S. – with U.S. diplomats in Iraq, the Prime Minister made this offer. That’s the whole --

MS. PSAKI: I don’t have anything more to tell you, Matt. That’s all – I’m going to leave it at that.

QUESTION: Does the Secretary have a reaction to, like, the bipartisan group of lawmakers who are – want to tighten sanctions on Iran right now? Because I think there’s reports that --

MS. PSAKI: I know there’s been legislation out there. I don’t have any more specific reaction. We wouldn’t comment on draft legislation.

QUESTION: Is that something that the Secretary would encourage or discourage?

MS. PSAKI: Obviously, we have a series of sanctions that we’ve put in place as it relates to Iran.

QUESTION: But tightening them at this time?

MS. PSAKI: I just don’t have any more for you on that.

QUESTION: Wait a second. You comment on draft legislation all the time.

MS. PSAKI: I don’t have any comment on this specific case.

QUESTION: You don’t have any comment on that specific legislation?

MS. PSAKI: I would just say that, obviously, the Secretary’s position is what I just conveyed, which is that the ball is in Iran’s court. We’ve continued to put in place crippling sanctions on Iran, and we are working through the P-5+1 process.

QUESTION: I mean, just to put a fine point on this --

MS. PSAKI: Mm-hmm.

QUESTION: -- you do comment on draft legislation all the time. In fact, your colleague, Ms. Harf, talked about draft legislation in the House that would gut the foreign affairs budget. She called it – it would be catastrophic or something like that. So let’s not say that you don’t comment on draft legislation.

MS. PSAKI: Okay.

QUESTION: Change topic?

 

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2013/07/212484.htm#IRAN

[TBomb]

You would think our govt would be doing all they could to arrange peace talks, whether it's true about M facilitating them or not.  But this conversation just proves they are already agreed on an agenda, to my mind.

[waterman13]

Exactly TBomb.

[Boozer]

Thanks