Though it comes as little surprise given the past four months of political fighting, Vice President Joe Biden’s Iraq visit has come to an end, and his demand for a “fast and peaceful” transition of power appears to have accomplished nothing.
Vice President Biden left the nation today, with every faction involved saying that there still was no concrete plan for forming the next coalition government. The top three factions are each demanding that their favorite candidate be given the prime ministership in the next government.
Each faction is said to be meeting with the others. State of Law has claimed to have already made a deal with the Iraqi National Alliance (INA), though both insist they get the prime ministership and the deal seems to be faltering. Iraqiya, the largest bloc, is also meeting with State of Law and the INA separately.
Though the new parliament has held at least one official meeting, they are still far from the point at which a new government can be declared, and officials haven’t even decided on a new president, the first step before the coalition talks can really begin in earnest. Early indications are that the fourth place bloc, the Kurdistan Alliance, will likely retain the presidency.