By NNN-KUNA
Baghdad : The Iraqi parliament on Wednesday approved laws of the 2008 federal budget, the governors’ councils and the general pardon following months of debate over the controversial draft bills.
First deputy speaker Khaled Al-Attiyah told a news conference after the session the house approved the federal budget law after delaying debate for five times.
He noted that 17 percent of the budget were allocated for the Kurdistan region.
Regarding the general pardon law, Al-Attiyah said all parties were in agreement over the bill, while noting that governorates would have further authorities in development and construction.
In another development, the US said Wednesday the long-term agreement between Washington and Baghdad would be signed in the next few weeks, and noted that Iraq would abondon the Article VII of the UN charter by end of this year.
Visiting US Attorney General Michael Mukasey and American ambassador in Baghdad Ryan Crocker told a news conference that negotiations for the long-term agreement would be transparent, and that the deal would be submitted to the Iraqi parliament and media.
Mukasey said he met with chairman of the supreme judicial council Medhat Mahmoud and other judicial officials, and have found that the judges were facing many troubles in the country.
He said the US was backing the judges through building justice.
Mukasey said there were 200 employees from the US state department working with the Iraqi judiciary authorities to enforce justice, as well as providing training to use technology in their work.
Crocker welcomed the Iraqi parliament’s approval of the bills of the 2008 federal budget, governors’ councils’ and the general pardon.
In WASHINGTON, the negotiations between the Bush administration and Iraqi government on a long-term framework agreement will not “tie the hands of the next US commander in chief”, according to the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates on Wednesday.
Rice and Gates said the negotiations between the US ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker and Baghdad on an agreement regarding the “status of (American) forces” would not call for continued combat missions, set troop levels, commit the US to join Iraq in a war against another country or authorize permanent bases in Iraq.
“In short, nothing to be negotiated in the coming months will tie the hands of the next commander in chief, whomever he or she may be,” Rice and Gates wrote jointly in an opinion piece published in the Washington Post newspaper.
Democrats in Congress have raised concern that the Bush administration could use the agreement to solidify a long-term U.S. military presence before the next president takes office in January 2009.
Several senators, mainly democrats, have argued the agreement should be subject to Senate approval, which Rice and Gates rejected in their article.
“Consistent with well-established practice regarding such agreements, nothing will involve the US Senate’s treaty-ratification authority-although we will work closely with the appropriate committees of Congress to keep lawmakers informed and provide complete transparency,” they wrote.
Their comments come ahead of Congressional hearing, on Wednesday, to explore ways of reducing violence in Iraq, bringing together diplomats, security experts and military officials.
However Gates, who was scheduled to appear at the hearing, cancelled his planned appearance after falling on ice and fracturing his right shoulder.
Both Rice and Gates, in an effort to defend the Administrations talks with the Iraqi government on the status of the US forces, said the negotiations, rather, “will give the president legal authority to protect our national interest-and the latitude to chart the next administration’s course”.
However, these negotiations call for US forces to remain in Iraq beyond the deadline mandated by the UN, which expires in the end of 2008.
“It is clear, that US forces will need to operate in Iraq beyond the end of this year for progress in stabilizing Iraq to continue.” Gates and Rice wrote jointly.
“The current UN authorization expires at the end of this year, and Iraq has indicated that it will not seek an extension. It would rather have an arrangement that is more in line with what typically governs the relationships between two sovereign nations,” they added.
The US has etched out “status of forces” agreements with at least 115 nations, Rice and Gates said.
“In these negotiations, we seek to set the basic parameters for the US presence in Iraq, including the appropriate authority and jurisdiction necessary to operate effectively and to carry out essential missions such as helping the Iraqi government fight al Qaeda, develop its security forces, and stem the flow of lethal weapons and training from Iran.” Rice and Gates explained.
“There is little doubt that 2008 will be a year of critical transition in Iraq as our force levels continue to come down. But to continue the success we have seen in recent months, the Iraqi people and government will continue to need our help.” they added.