Iraq’s coalition government continues to struggle with internal feuds tonight, with the largest bloc, Iraqiya, remaining the most difficult bloc to reconcile with a government that is internally dominated by Shi’ites and envisions high profile positions for the relatively small Kurdistania bloc.

Iraqiya insists they haven’t even submitted any candidates for ministerial positions yet, but they maintain that they expect to get some. One spokeman for the bloc warned in particular that if reports that the Kurds were going to get the Foreign Ministry position the much larger Iraqiya would demand a bigger share of the cabinet.

As well they might, after all the Kurdish bloc has only 43 seats to Iraqiya’s 91. Despite this, the Kurds have secured the presidency and apparently the foreign ministership, while all Iraqiya has gotten was a made up position with no powers and the relatively powerless position of parliamentary speaker.

And even the speakership is under contention, as Kurdish officials condemn Iraqiya’s choice, Osama Nujiefi, as an “Arab Nationalist.” Nujiefi’s brother is the governor of Nineveh Province, a province dominated by Sunni Arabs but which Kurdistan officials have sought to annex as part of autonomous Kurdistan.

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