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It seems that talks between Al Iraqiya List led by Iyad Allawi and State of Law Coalition headed by Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki were still at an early stage six months after a general election and while the countdown for US Forces withdrawal has started, Allawi noted in an interview with Reuters.
Allawi hopes coalition talks will have progressed by end-October stressing that forming a government was key to security in Iraq after the United States formally ended combat operations.
"We are still in a preliminary stage. We know that there is a delay, but it is important to be safe and sure than sorry ... the United States is leaving, they have started already to draw down, and we believe that there is a lot to be done in this country to make it safe and stable”, former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said.
Allawi warned that the crisis in Iraq has caused a political vacuum which has left a void for insurgents to exploit with persistent attacks particularly against the army and police.
"Eight years have gone and we haven't been able to build a full-blown security. So God knows when Iraqis will be able to be responsible for their own security and the security of the Iraqi people," Allawi added.
Allawi pointed out to two main pending points in coalition talks namely the position of prime minister and the question of who had the right to form the next government.
Allawi said it was important to divide power amongst all political blocs in Iraq's fledgling democracy.
“Because we are transitioning, we need to divide power, and we need to say that no one is going to be disenfranchised, and that no one is going to be the junior partner and the other is the senior partner. Unfortunately, some of our colleagues in the political spectrum believe that to offer you one or two seats in the government is enough, and this is regarded as being part and parcel of the political process. We don't see this”, he said.
But the political impasse has kept many foreign investors waiting on the sidelines, Allawi added.
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