After 3 months, Iraqi parliament meets... for 18 minutes

Posted By Joshua Keating Monday, June 14, 2010 - 1:50 PM Share

After months of court challenges, coalition building, and sectarian brinksmanship, today's 18-minute parliamentary session seems a little anticlimactic: 

Given the deadlock, the brevity of the session was expected. It was recessed until an unspecified date, possibly when a broader agreement on a coalition is reached. The most optimistic prediction for a deal was a week; the more pessimistic said months.

“Our desire was to open this session without any further complications,” acknowledged Sadiq al-Rikabi, a lawmaker and adviser to Mr. Maliki.

After the session, lawmakers defended the pace of the negotiations and insisted that the symbolism of Parliament finally convening would hasten the talks.

“This was a good day,” said Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurdish leader.

Of course, 18 minutes is plenty of time for controversy in Iraqi politics, and there were disputes over whether the oath should be read in Kurdish and whether U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill should attend. (Yes to both, as it turned out.)

 

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