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TweetLet’s hope the Iraqis are fully able to take control of their country by 2012. From what I have seen and heard, it is looking more and more like they want to control their own destiny. Personally, I hope they become like Bahrain or Dubai, a hub for international commerce. But with Iran looming…
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — U.S. and Iraqi negotiators have reached agreement on a proposal calling for a complete U.S. military withdrawal from Iraq by 2012, the head Iraqi negotiator said Friday.
The deal still must be approved by both sides, said Mohammed al-Haj Hamoud, deputy foreign minister and head of the Iraqi negotiating team.In Washington, deputy State Department spokesman Robert Wood said, “we’re not quite there yet. There are still some things that need to be worked out.”
In Crawford, Texas, a spokesman said President Bush was briefed on the negotiations and then spoke by secure video conference with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. The spokesman said the two agreed that their negotiating teams would continue discussions.
Hamoud said Thursday’s meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and al-Maliki was helpful in reaching the tentative agreement.
Hamoud said the proposal also says the last date for the presence of U.S. troops in cities and towns will be June 30, 2009.
There are clear caveats, however.
If the Iraqi government sees the necessity of keeping the American forces in cities and towns or in Iraq past December 31, 2011, it would ask that the Americans stay. A joint Iraqi-U.S. committee would help define the duration and number of forces that would be needed and regularly assess the security situation on the ground.
Regarding the issue of troop immunity from Iraqi law and American authority over military operations, American authorities would have jurisdiction over their troops. Hamoud also said that in case of a major crime such as murder, the case would be reviewed by a U.S.-Iraqi joint committee.
Read the rest on CNN.
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