Iraq Minister Demands Exit Timetable

Foreign minister Rubaie won't accept a US security deal without one
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 8, 2008 10:00 AM CDT
Iraq Minister Demands Exit Timetable
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki gestures as he speaks at a meeting with several Arab ambassadors to the United Arab Emirates in that country's capital, Abu Dhabi, Monday, July 7, 2008.   (AP Photo/Iraqi Government, HO)

Iraq won’t accept any security deal that doesn’t include strict guidelines for a US withdrawal, National Security Adviser Mouwaffak al-Rubaie said today. The US waved off similar statements from Nouri al-Maliki yesterday, saying they didn’t believe the Iraqi PM really wanted a timetable, but Rubaie’s comments left little to interpretation. “Our stance in the negotiations … will be strong,” he said. “We will not accept any memorandum of understanding that doesn’t have specific dates to withdraw foreign forces.” (More Iraqi government stories.)

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