Official Terms US Security Pact with Iraq Dirty Deal

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran’s Prosecutor General Ghorbanali Dorri Najafabadi said here Friday that the US security pact with Iraq is a dirty deal, serving Washington’s Middle East policies.

Speaking as a pre-sermon lecturer in this week’s Friday prayers congregation, Najafabadi criticized the US for forcing Iraqis to sign a deal with it.

“Americans each day think of a new game with Iraq. Recent dirty security deal is an instance of such games,” he added.

According to an Islamic republic news agency report, he said the deal recalls a capitulation deal the US signed with Iran 40 years ago.

“So doing, Americans want to threaten Iraqi nation’s policies and plans and independence, jeopardizing Iraqi judiciary’s independence.”

The US is in talks with Iraqi officials to get them to sign a provocative security agreement which secures long-term US presence in Iraq.

If ratified by the Iraqi government, the Status of Forces Agreements (SOFA) would also grant US forces in Iraq immunity from prosecution.

It also gives the occupation forces a free rein to stage military operations wherever and whenever they deem necessary, without consulting the Iraqi government.

Tehran is concerned that the yet-not-concluded security deal could lead to establishment of permanent US bases in the neighboring country.

The proposed pact is also facing widespread opposition among Iraqi politicians.

Many fear Washington has plans to keep permanent bases, despite a denial of any such plan written into the proposal. Iraqis say the drafts submitted by the Americans thus far would infringe on Iraq’s sovereignty by giving US forces too much freedom to operate.

The security pact also faces strong criticism from members of al-Maliki’s own coalition. Two Iraqi officials familiar with the negotiations have warned that a deal is unlikely to be reached before the end of President Bush’s term in January unless Washington backs off some demands seen as giving American forces too much freedom to operate in Iraq and infringing on Iraqi sovereignty.

Iraq’s parliament must approve the deal, and the two officials said opposition in the legislature was so widespread that it stood no chance of winning approval without significant changes in the US position. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the secrecy surrounding the negotiations.