LONDON, June 5 (Xinhua) -- A
secret deal being negotiated in Baghdad would perpetuate the American military
occupation of Iraq indefinitely, regardless of the outcome of the U.S.
presidential election in November, British newspaper The Independent revealed
Thursday.
According to the report, the deal, details of which
have been leaked to The Independent, is likely to have an explosive political
effect in Iraq.
Iraqi officials fear that the accord, under which
U.S. troops would occupy permanent bases, conduct military operations, arrest
Iraqis and enjoy immunity from Iraqi law, will destabilize Iraq's position in
the Middle East and lay the basis for unending conflict in their country.
Under the terms of the treaty, the U.S. would retain
the long-term use of more than 50 bases in Iraq. American negotiators are also
demanding immunity from Iraqi law for U.S. troops and contractors, and a free
hand to carry out arrests and conduct military activities in Iraq without
consulting the Baghdad government.
The precise nature of the American demands has been
kept secret until now, and the leaks are certain to generate an angry backlash
in Iraq, said the report.
"It is a terrible breach of our sovereignty," said
one Iraqi politician, adding that if the security deal was signed it would
delegitimize the government in Baghdad which will be seen as an American pawn.
The U.S. has repeatedly denied that it wants
permanent bases in Iraq, but one Iraqi source said, "this is just a tactical
subterfuge."
Washington also wants control of Iraqi airspace below
29,000ft and the right to pursue its "war on terror" in Iraq, giving it the
authority to arrest anybody it wants and to launch military campaigns without
consultation.
According to the report, Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri
al-Maliki is believed to be personally opposed to the terms of the new pact but
feels his coalition government cannot stay in power without U.S. backing.
Although Iraqi ministers said they would reject any
agreement limiting Iraqi sovereignty, political observers in Baghdad suspect
they would sign in the end and simply want to establish their credentials as
defenders of Iraq's independence by a show of defiance now.
But the deal also threatens to provoke a political
crisis in the United States.
U.S. President George W. Bush wants to push it
through by the end of next month so he can declare a military victory and claim
his 2003 invasion has been justified.
But by perpetuating the U.S. presence in Iraq, the
long-term settlement would undercut pledges by the Democratic presidential
nominee, Barack Obama, to withdraw U.S. troops if he is elected president in
November.
The timing of the agreement would also boost the
Republican candidate John McCain, who has claimed the United States is on the
verge of victory in Iraq a victory that he said Obama would throwaway by a
premature military withdrawal, said the report.
Currently,
the U.S. has 151,000 troops in Iraq and, even after projected withdrawals next
month, troop levels will stand at more than 142,000 -- 10,000 more than when the
military "surge" began in January 2007.
BAGHDAD, June 1 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi government said Sunday that its negotiations with the United States over their future relations are still in the early stage and the sovereignty will not be sacrificed.
The remarks came amid strong voice in Iraq against a planned agreement, which is expected to enable the U.S. a long-term military presence here. Full story
