Allawi’s Bloc Courts Kurds for Govt Push

Iraqiya Likely to Support Kurdistan Alliance Keeping Presidency

by Jason Ditz, June 23, 2010

Former Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi’s Iraqiya bloc today held a meeting with the Kurdistan Alliance, the largest bloc from Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region. The discussion centered around a possible alliance toward forming a new government.

The official statement from the meeting was light on details, but did suggest that Iraqiya was committed to seeing a new president elected within 30 days of the first session of the new parliament, likely hinting at previous reports that they will support the Kurdish bloc holding on to the presidency.

Though far from the kingmaker it was in the previous election, the Kurdistan Alliance remains a valuable bloc, and if it is able to hold on to the presidency, it will also be able to select which bloc gets the first crack at forming a new government. They have suggested in the past that they would support Iraqiya, as the bloc with the largest plurality.

The two sides said they will hold additional meetings in the future. Despite Iraqiya’s plurality, the alliance of the second and third place finishers, the State of Law and Iraqi National Alliance, is seen as more likely to form the next government eventually.

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