Iraqi Parliament Approves landmark US Military Pact

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BAGHDAD: Iraq's parliament on Thursday approved a landmark military pact that will see all US troops withdraw by the end of 2011.

After 11 months of hard-nosed negotiations with Washington and a flurry of 11th hour horse-trading leading up to the vote, the pact was approved by 144 members of the 198 who attended the session of the 275-member assembly.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shiite-led government succeeded in corralling a majority to support the historic agreement, including the main blocs representing the country's Sunni and Kurdish minorities.

"Today if this passes it will be a victory for democracy because the opposition have done their part and the supporters have done their part," government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said ahead of the vote.

"It is good to see that representatives have reached a national consensus. Everyone should understand that if there are gains, they are for all Iraqis, and if there are losses, they will also be for all Iraqis."

The agreement was approved by the cabinet a week ago and was virtually guaranteed to be ratified by Iraq's presidential council.

The measure would govern some 150,000 US troops stationed in over 400 bases when their UN mandate expires at the end of the year, giving the Iraqi government veto power over virtually all of their operations.

The agreement is similar to so-called Status of Forces Agreements (SOFA) concluded with other US allies but marks a major turning point in the relations between the two countries, who have gone to war twice in the last 20 years.

The vote came after a flurry of last-minute negotiations in which the main Sunni parties secured a package of political reforms from the government and a commitment to hold a referendum on the pact in the middle of next year.


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